FOLK  STORIES 

Edited  By 

Horace  E.Scudder 


PRICE  FORTY  CBKTS 


a 


FABLES  AND  FOLK  STORIES 


HORACE  E.  SCUDDER 


HOUQHTON,  MIFFLIN  AND  COMPANY 

Boston:  «  Park  Street;  New  York:  11  Eait  Seventeenth  Street 
Chicago :  28  Lateside  Building 


Copyright,  1882, 1887  and  1890, 
Br  HORACE  E.  8CDDDEE. 

All  rights  reserved. 


TV  Riverside  Press,  Cambridge,  Mast.,  U.  S.  A. 
Electrotype*!  and  Printed  by  H.  0.  Houghton  &  Company. 


PREFACE. 


As  soon  as  a  child  has  learned  to  make  out 
simple  sentences,  the  wise  teacher  looks  about 
for  something  which  it  is  worth  while  to  read. 
The  primer  and  the  reader  are  necessarily  sim- 
ple, but  the  simplicity  is,  for  the  most  part, 
below  the  child's  intelligence.  Children  can 
understand  by  hearing  long  before  they  can 
understand  by  reading  ;  during  the  period  when 
they  are  mastering  the  several  combinations  in 
which  a  boy,  a  rat,  and  a  cat  can  be  placed,  and 
are  acquiring  the  power  of  reading  at  sight,  they 
are  listening  to  books  which  are  by  no  means 
so  barren  in  their  simplicity,  and  as  soon  as 
they  are  able  to  read  the  little  stories  which 
they  find  in  their  first  readers  they  leave  them 
behind. 

It  is  interesting  to  note,  however,  that  there 
are  certain  parts  of  their  primer  which  they 
never  leave  behind  and  never  forget.  The 

2019887 


iv  PREFACE. 

Mother  Goose  Melodies  and  the  proverbs  which 
form  some  of  the  early  sentences  taught  them, 
the  quaint  nursery  tales  like  The  Story  of  Chicken 
Licken,  The  Old  Woman  and  Her  Pig,  The 
Three  Bears,  —  these  they  remember  and  sepa- 
rate from  the  chaff  of  the  ordinary  reading  exer- 
cises by  the  winnowing  fan  of  their  spiritual 
judgment.  They  perceive,  even  thus  early,  what 
is  literature  and  what  is  not  literature ;  they 
hold  to  that,  and  discard  this. 

Literature,  for  the  sake  of  which  the  art  of 
reading  is  acquired,  is  never  left  behind,  and  it 
becomes  of  importance  to  give  children,  as  soon 
as  may  be,  enduring  forms  on  which  they  may 
exercise  their  newly  acquired  power,  and  in 
which  they  may  take  the  first  draughts  of  a 
pleasure  as  genuine  as  any  to  be  enjoyed  when 
they  come  into  the  full  possession  of  their  blos- 
soming faculty  of  imagination. 

There  are  two  forms  of  literary  art  which  be- 
long rightfully  to  the  early  period  of  childhood  : 
the  Fable  and  the  Folk-Story.  The  fable  is 
oriental,  and  it  is  antique.  It  is  also  exceed- 
ingly current  and  universal  as  a  coin  of  speech. 
The  man  and  the  boy  both  use  it,  and  while  in 
its  full  form  it  seems  most  capable  of  giving 


PREFACE.  V 

pleasure  to  the  child,  its  conventionalism  enables 
the  mature  mind  to  accept  it  without  any  sense 
of  condescension  to  childish  things.  It  is  the 
most  perfect  literary  instrument  of  association 
between  the  young  and  the  old,  and  becomes 
therefore  by  right  the  first  possession  of  chil- 
dren in  literature. 

There  are  good  reasons,  from  its  structure, 
why  the  fable  should  be  adapted  to  the  use  of 
children.  In  the  first  place,  it  is  short;  the 
child  has  the  pleasure  of  reading  an  entire  story 
at  one  sitting.  Then  it  is  of  animals,  and  ani- 
mals are  the  natural  companions  of  the  child. 
Again,  it  is  interesting  and  novel;  it  appeals 
to  his  imagination,  for  it  represents  the  animal 
as  having  human  properties ;  and  it  suggests 
a  plain  moral.  It  is  true,  the  morality  of  the 
fable  usually  is  a  prudential  one,  but  prudence  is 
a  virtue  which  comes  early  in  the  lessons  of  life. 
We  may  rest  with  confidence  in  the  worth  of 
stories  which  have  been  tested  by  generations 
and  centuries  of  use. 

The  child,  therefore,  who  reads  the  classic 
fables  has  begun  his  acquaintance  with  perma- 
nent literature.  He  is  reading  what  the  world 
has  chosen  to  remember.  He  is  applying  his 


vi  PREFACE. 

new  powers  to  that  which  is  worth  while.  He 
is  beginning  to  receive  the  impressions  which  lit- 
erature has  made  upon  human  life,  and  the  early 
impressions  which  he  thus  receives  will  never  be- 
come even  consciously  faint.  That  is  to  say, 
there  never  will  come  a  time  in  his  life  when  the 
fable  may  not  still  give  him  pleasure  ;  but  the 
time  already  has  come  when  the  reading-book 
which  he  read  last  week  no  longer  can  excite  his 
interest  or  hold  his  attention.  Every  one  will 
recognize  the  important  step  which  a  child  has 
taken  when  he  has  entered  the  current  of  the 
world's  lasting  literature. 

The  folk-story  is  more  exclusively  the  child's, 
and  is  shared  by  older  people  rather  through 
memory  and  association  than  by  continued  use. 
Every  people  of  Europe,  and  the  Americans  by 
composite  inheritance,  have  a  body  of  household 
tales  which,  whatever  their  antiquity,  have  be- 
come the  peculiar  possession  of  Christendom. 
Scholars  have  made  comparative  studies  of  these 
tales,  but  they  have  based  such  studies  upon  the 
stories  as  they  have  been  transmitted,  not  so 
much  through  books  as  through  recital,  from 
mother  to  child,  in  the  course  of  generations. 
While  poets  were  forming  the  literature  which 


PREFACE.  vii 

fills  our  libraries,  the  unlettered  people  were 
repeating  to  each  other  these  familiar,  poetic 
tales.  Now  and  then  some  romancer  would 
take  one  of  them  and  set  it  forth  in  finer, 
more  fantastic  garb,  but  for  the  most  part  the 
form  was  a  homely  one,  which  did  not  vary 
greatly  from  one  age  to  another. 

In  preparing  this  book  for  use  in  schools,  I 
have  drawn  upon  two  volumes  I  had  already 
published.  The  Book  of  Fables  and  The  Book 
of  Folk-Stories,  and  have  added  others  not  there 
given.  In  writing  out  the  fables,  so  far  as  they 
were  from  Msop,  I  have  endeavored  to  preserve 
the  exact  lines  of  the  original  story,  and  to  use 
phrases  which  present  no  extraordinary  difficul- 
ties to  a  child.  It  has  not  been  my  purpose  to 
turn  these  fables  into  words  of  one  syllable, 
for  such  words  and  the  construction  which 
they  compel  often  produce  an  artificial  effect, 
of  greater  difficulty  to  the  young  reader  than 
the  more  natural  arrangement  of  words  which 
may  happen  to  have  two  syllables  or  even  three. 

In  the  case  of  the  folk-stories,  I  have  not  de- 
parted knowingly  from  the  generally  accepted 
structure.  I  have  tried  simply  to  use  words  and 
constructions  which  present  the  fewest  difficul' 


viii  PREFACE. 

ties.  I  should  like  to  believe  that  I  have  suc- 
ceeded to  some  extent  in  thinking  out  these 
stories  as  a  child  would  think  them,  and  so  have 
used  that  order  and  choice  of  words  which  would 
-be  the  natural  expression  of  a  child's  mind.  By 
,a  mingling  of  the  two  forms,  greater  variety  has 
been  secured,  and  the  arrangement  has  regard 
to  the  order  of  ease  in  reading. 

H.  E.  SCUDDER. 

CAMBRIDGE,  MAS*.,  August  13,  1890. 


CONTENTS 


MM 

LITTLE  ONE  EYES,  LITTLE  Two  EYES,  AND  LITTLE  THEEE  EYES 

I.  THE  GOAT 13 

II.  THE  TBEE 17 

m.  THE  PRINCE     .        .     •  .    '•  «        .     -.       .       .       .21 

THE  CRAB  AND  HIS  MOTHER  .        .        .        .        .       .        .  24 

THE  BOYS  AND  THE  FROGS        .       .        .       .        .        .        .24 

THE  WIND  AND  THE  SCN       .       ...        .        .        .  24 

LITTLE  RED  RIDING-HOOD         ,,.....  25 

THE  CROW  AND  THE  PITCHER 28 

A  COUNTRY  FELLOW  AND  THE  RIVER 28 

THE  ELVES  AND  THE  SHOEMAKER 29 

THE  Ass  IN  THE  LION'S  SKIN 32 

THE  STAR-GAZER 32 

THE  BOY  AND  THE  NETTLE 33 

THE  DOG  IN  THE  MANGER 33 

THE  BOY  WHO  STOLE  APPLES 33 

HANS  EN  LUCK. 

I.  THE  SILVER,  THE  HORSE,  THE  Cow,  AND  THE  PIG        .  34 

II.  THE  PIG,  THE  GOOSE,  THE  GRINDSTONE,  AND  NOTHING  38 

THE  LION  AND  THE  MOUSE 41 

THE  LION  AND  THE  BEAR 42 

THE  HUNTER  AND  THE  WOODCUTTER 43 

THE  DOG  AND  THE  WOLF 43 

JACK  AND  THE  BEAN-STALK. 

I.  THE  BEANS  ARE  PLANTED 44 

n.  JACK  CAPTURES  A  HEN 46 

III.  THE  GIANT'S  MONEY-BAGS 51 

IV.  THE  HARP 53 

THE  WOLF  AND  THE  GOAT 56 

THE  STAG  AND  THE  LION 57 

THE  FARMER'S  SONS 57 

THE  Fox  IN  THE  WELL    .                                                         .  58 


X  CONTENTS. 

THE  Two  PACKS 58 

Puss  IN  BOOTS 

I.  Pcss  GOES  A-HUNTING 59 

II.  PUSS   AND   THE   LlON 62 

THE  FARMER  AND  THE  STORK 65 

THE  Fox  AND  THE  GRAPES .66 

THE  GOOSE  THAT  LAID  GOLDEN  EGOS 66 

THE  DOG  AND  HIS  IMAGE 67 

THE  MAN  AND  THE  LION 67 

TOM  THUMB. 

I.    TOM  IS  SOLD  FOR  A  BARGAIN 68 

II.  HOW   TOM   FRIGHTENED   THE   THIEVES   ....      71 

III.  INSIDE  A  Cow 74 

IV.  SAFE  AT  HOME  AGAIN 75 

BELLING  THE  CAT 78 

THE  FROG  AND  THE  Ox 78 

THE  MILLER,  HIS  SON,  AND  THEIR  Ass         ....  79 

THE  WOLF  IN  SHEEP'S  CLOTHING 81 

THE  ARAB  AND  HIS  CAMEL 81 

THE  FISHERMAN  AND  THE  SPRAT 83 

THE  TORTOISE  AND  THE  HARE 83 

THE  REEDS  AND  THE  OAK 84 

THE  COUNTRY  MOUSE  AND  THE  TOWN  MOUSE     ...  84 

THE  GNAT  AND  THE  BULL 86 

CINDERELLA  ;  OR,  THE  GLASS  SLIPPER. 

I.  CINDERELLA  IN  THE  KITCHEN 86 

II.  CINDERELLA  IN  THE  PALACE 91 

THE  Fox  AND  THE  LION 96 

THE  SLEEPING  BEAUTY  IN  THE  WOOD. 

I.  THE  BEAUTY  GOES  TO  SLEEP 97 

II.  THE  BEAUTY  WAKES 101 

THE  EAGLE  SHOT  WITH  AN  EAGLE'S  ARROW  .        .        .        .104 

THE  Fox  AND  THE  STORK 104 

THE  SPENDTHRIFT  AND  THE  SWALLOW 105 

THE  ANT  AND  THE  GRASSHOPPER 105 

THE  LION  AND  THB  Fox 106 

THE  WOLF  AND  THE  SHEPHERD 106 

THE  FLIES  AND  THB  POT  OF  HONEY 107 

THE  CAT,  THE  MONKEY,  AND  THE  CHESTNUTS     .        .        .      108 

THE  Fox  THAT  LOST  HIS  TAIL 108 

DICK  WHITTINGTON  AND  HIS  CAT. 

I.   DICK  GOES  TO  LONDON 109 

II.  DICK'S  CAT   .  112 


CONTENTS.  XI 

HI.  Bow  BELLS 114 

IV.  LORD  MAYOR  WHITTINGTON 117 

THE  TRAVELERS  AND  THE  BEAR 120 

THE  WOLVES  AND  THE  SHEEP 121 

THE  LARK  AND  HER  YOUNG  ONES 121 

BEAUTY  AND  THE  BEAST. 

I.  BEAUTY  AND  HER  SISTERS 123 

H.  THE  BEAST  AT  HOME 126 

HI.  BEAUTY  GOES  TO  THE  BEAST 129 

IV.  THE  CHARM  is  BROKEN 133 

THE  LION  IN  LOVE 137 

THE  TRAVELER  AND  THE  VIPER 137 

THE  WOLF  AND  THE  LAMB 138 

THE  TRAVELERS  AND  THE  AXE 139 

THE  TORTOISE  AND  THE  EAGLE 139 

THE  WHITE  CAT. 

I.  THE  PALACE  OF  THE  WHITE  CAT         .        .        .        .140 
II.  A  YEAR  OF  SPORT 143 

III.  THE  LITTLE  DOG  AND  THE  CAMBRIC    ....  146 

IV.  THE  WHITE  CAT  HAS  HER  HEAD  cur  OFF        .        .      150 
V.  THE  WHITE  CAT'S  STORY 151 

VI.  THE  WHITE  CAT'S  STORY  ENDED       .        .        .        .154 

THE  JACKDAW  AND  THE  DOVES 156 

THE  HARES  AND  THE  FROGS 157 

THE  FOUR  BULLS  AND  THE  LION 158 

THE  COUNTRY  MAID  AND  HER  MILK-PAIL    ....      158 

THE  LION,  THE  Ass,  AND  THE  Fox 159 

THE  FISHERMAN  AND  ms  WIFE. 

I.  THE  FIRST  WISH 160 

II.  THE  SECOND  WISH 162 

III.  THE  THIRD  WISH 163 

IV.  THE  FOURTH  WISH 165 

V.  THE  FIFTH  WISH 166 

VI.  THE  FINAL  WISH 168 

THE  KID  AND  THE  WOLF 169 

THE  CAT,  THE  WEASEL,  AND  THE  YOUNG  RABBIT       .        .      170 

THE  WOMAN  AND  HER  MAIDS 171 

THE  TRAVELING  MUSICIANS. 

I.  HOW  THEY  SET  OUT 172 

II.  HOW  THEY  GAVE  A  CONCERT 174 

III.  HOW  THEY  MADE  THEMSELVES  AT  HOME      .        .        .  176 

THE  KITE  AND  THE  PIGEONS 178 

THE  CAT  AND  THE  MICK 178 


xii  CONTENTS. 

CLEVER  ALICE. 

I.  SHE  SHOWS  HOW  PRUDENT  SHE  is  ....  179 
II.  ALL  FIND  OUT  HOW  PRUDENT  ALICE  is  .  .  .  181 
III.  How  VERY  CLEVER  SHE  PROVED  TO  BE  .  .  184 

THE  WOLF  AND  THE  CRANE 186 

THE  FROGS  ASK  FOR  A  KING 186 

THE  GOLDEN  BIRD. 

I.  THE  BIRD  CARRIES  OFF  THE  APPLES     .        .        .      187 
II.  Two  BROTHERS  SET  OUT  TO  FIND  THE  BIRD    .        .  188 

III.  THE  YOUNGEST  SON  SEEKS  THE  GOLDEN  BIRD    .       190 

IV.  THE  BIRD  is  FOUND  AND  LOST 191 

V.  THE  GOLDEN  HORSE 192 

VI.  THE  BEAUTIFUL  PRINCESS 193 

VII.  THE  PRINCESS,  THE  HORSE,  AND  THE  BIRD    .        .      195 

VIII.  How  THE  YOUNGEST  SON  LOST  EVERYTHING     .        .  196 

IX.  THE  YOUNGEST  SON  COMES  TO  THE  THRONE  197 


FABLES  AND  FOLK  STORIES. 


LITTLE    ONE  EYE,    LITTLE  TWO  EYES,    AND 
LITTLE  THREE  EYES. 

I. 
THE   GOAT. 

THERE  was  once  a  woman  who  had  three 
daughters.  The  eldest  was  called  Little  One 
Eye,  because  she  had  only  one  eye  in  the  middle 
of  her  forehead.  The  second  was  called  Little 
Two  Eyes,  because  she  had  two  eyes  like  other 
people.  The  youngest  was  called  Little  Three 
Eyes,  because  she  had  three  eyes  ;  the  third  eye 
was  also  in  the  middle  of  her  forehead. 

Because  Little  Two  Eyes  looked  like  other 
people,  her  sisters  and  her  mother  could  not  bear 
her.  They  said :  — 

"  You  have  two  eyes  and  are  no  better  than 
anybody  else.  You  do  not  belong  to  us."  They 
knocked  her  about,  and  gave  her  shabby  clothes, 
and  fed  her  with  food  left  over  from  their  meals; 
in  short,  they  vexed  her  whenever  they  could. 


14       LITTLE  ONE  EYE,  LITTLE  TWO  EYES, 

One  day  Little  Two  Eyes  was  sent  into  the 
fields  to  look  after  the  goat.  She  was  quite 
hungry,  because  her  sisters  had  given  her  so 
little  to  eat,  and  she  sat  down  and  began  to 
cry.  She  cried  so  hard  that  a  little  stream  of 
tears  ran  out  of  each  eye.  All  at  once  a  wise 
woman  stood  near  her,  and  asked  :  — 

"  Little  Two  Eyes,  why  do  you  cry  ?  "  Little 
Two  Eyes  said:  — 

"  Have  I  not  need  to  cry  ?  Because  I  have 
two  eyes,  like  other  people,  my  sisters  and  my 
mother  cannot  bear  me.  They  knock  me  about ; 
they  give  me  shabby  clothes;  and  they  feed 
me  only  with  the  food  left  over  from  their 
table.  To-day  they  have  given  me  so  little 
that  I  am  quite  hungry."  The  wise  woman 
said  :  — 

"  Little  Two  Eyes,  dry  your  eyes,  and  I  will 
tell  you  what  to  do.  Only  say  to  your  goat : 
*  Little  goat,  bleat ;  little  table,  rise,'  and  a 
neatly-laid  table  will  stand  before  you,  covered 
with  food.  Eat  as  much  as  you  like.  When 
you  have  had  all  you  want,  only  say :  '  Lit- 
tle goat,  bleat ;  little  table,  away,'  and  it  will 
be  gone."  Then  the  wise  woman  disappeared. 
Little  Two  Eyes  thought:  — 

"I  must  try  at  once,  for  I  am  much  too 
hungry  to  wait."  So  she  said:  — 

"  Little  goat,  bleat ;  little  table,  rise."     In  a 


AND  LITTLE  THREE  EYES.  15 

twinkling  there  stood  before  her  a  little  table 
covered  with  a  white  cloth.  On  it  were  laid 
a  plate,  knife  and  fork,  and  silver  spoon. 
The  nicest  food  was  on  the  plate,  smoking  hot. 
Then  Little  Two  Eyes  began  to  eat,  and  found 
the  food  very  good.  When  she  had  had  enough, 
she  said :  — 

"  Little  goat,  bleat ;  little  table,  away."  In 
an  instant  the  table  was  gone. 

"  That  is  a  fine  way  to  keep  house,"  thought 
Little  Two  Eyes,  and  she  was  quite  merry. 

At  the  end  of  the  day  Little  Two  Eyes  drove 
her  goat  home.  She  found  a  dish  with  some 
food  in  it ;  her  sisters  had  put  it  aside  for  her 
from  their  table,  but  she  did  not  taste  it.  She 
did  not  need  it. 

The  next  day  she  went  out  again  with  her 
goat,  and  did  not  take  the  few  crusts  which 
her  sisters  put  aside  for  her.  This  went  on 
for  several  days.  At  last  her  sisters  said  to 
each  other  :  — 

"  All  is  not  right  with  Little  Two  Eyes.  She 
always  leaves  her  food;  she  used  to  eat  all 
that  was  given  her ;  she  must  have  found  some 
other  way  to  be  fed.  " 

They  meant  to  find  out  what  Little  Two 
Eyes  did.  So  the  next  time  that  Little  Two 
Eyes  set  out,  Little  One  Eye  came  to  her  and 


16       LITTLE  ONE  EYE,  LITTLE  TWO  EYES, 

"  I  will  go  with  you  into  the  field,  and  see 
that  the  goat  is  well  taken  care  of,  and  feeds 
in  the  best  pasture."  But  Little  Two  Eyes 
saw  what  Little  One  Eye  had  in  her  mind. 
So  she  drove  the  goat  into  the  long  grass,  and 
said  :  — 

"  Come,  Little  One  Eye,  we  will  sit  down 
and  I  will  sing  to  you."  Little  One  Eye  sat 
down ;  she  was  tired  after  her  long  walk  in 
the  hot  sun,  and  Little  Two  Eyes  began  to 
sing :  — 

"  Are  you  awake,  Little  One  Eye  ?  Are 
you  asleep,  Little  One  Eye?  Are  you  awake, 
Little  One  Eye?  Are  you  asleep,  Little  One 
Eye?  Are  you  awake?  Are  you  asleep? 
Awake?  Asleep?"  By  this  time  Little  One 
Eye  had  shut  her  one  eye  and  was  fast  asleep. 
When  Little  Two  Eyes  saw  this,  she  said 
softly :  - 

"Little  goat,  bleat;  little  table,  rise;"  and 
she  sat  at  the  table  and  ate  and  drank  till 
she  had  had  enough.  Then  she  said  as  be- 
fore :  — 

"  Little  goat,  bleat ;  little  table,  away,"  and 
in  a  twinkling  all  was  gone. 

Little  Two  Eyes  now  awoke  Little  One  Eye, 
and  said  :  — 

"Little  One  Eye,  why  do  you  not  watch? 
You  have  been  asleep,  and  the  goat  could  have 


AND  LITTLE  THREE  EYES.  17 

run  all  over  the  world.  Come !  let  us  go 
home."  So  home  they  went,  and  Little  Two 
Eyes  again  did  not  touch  the  dish.  The  others 
asked  Little  One  Eye  what  Little  Two  Eyes 
did  in  the  field.  But  she  could  only  say :  — 
"  Oh,  I  fell  asleep  out  there.". 


IL 

THE   TREE. 

THE  next  day,  the  mother  said  to  Little 
Three  Eyes :  — 

"  This  time  you  must  go  with  Little  Two 
Eyes,  and  see  if  any  one  brings  her  food  and 
drink."  Then  Little  Three  Eyes  said  to  Lit- 
tle Two  Eyes:  — 

"  I  will  go  with  you  into  the  field,  and  see 
that  the  goat  is  well  taken  care  of,  and  feeds  in 
the  best  pasture."  But  Little  Two  Eyes  saw 
what  Little  Three  Eyes  had  in  her  mind.  So 
she  drove  the  goat  into  the  long  grass,  and 
said :  — 

"  Come,  Little  Three  Eyes,  we  will  sit  down, 
and  I  will  sing  to  you."  Little  Three  Eyes 
sat  down;  she  was  tired  after  her  long  walk 
in  the  hot  sun,  and  Little  Two  Eyes  began 
to  sing,  as  before :  — 

"Are  you  awake,  Little  Three  Eyes?"  but 
instead  of  going  on,  — 


18       LITTLE  ONE  EYE,  LITTLE  TWO  EYES, 

"Are  you  asleep,  Little  Three  Eyes?"  she 
did  not  think,  and  sang :  — 

"Are  you  asleep,  Little  Two  Eyes?"  and 
went  on  :  — 

"  Are  you  awake,  Little  Three  Eyes  ?  Are 
you  asleep,  Little  Two  Eyes  ?  Are  you  awake  ? 
Are  you  asleep  ?  Awake  ?  Asleep  ?  "  By  this 
time  the  two  eyes  of  Little  Three  Eyes  fell  asleep, 
but  the  third  eye  did  not  go  to  sleep,  for  it 
was  not  spoken  to  by  the  verse.  Little  Three 
Eyes,  to  be  sure,  shut  it,  and  made  believe  that 
it  went  to  sleep.  Then  she  opened  it  a  little 
way  and  watched  Little  Two  Eyes. 

When  Little  Two  Eyes  thought  Little  Three 
Eyes  was  fast  asleep,  she  said  softly :  — 

"  Little  goat,  bleat ;  little  table,  rise  ; "  and 
she  sat  at  the  table  and  ate  and  drank  till 
she  had  had  enough.  Then  she  said  as  be- 
fore :  — 

"  Little  goat,  bleat  ;  little  table,  away." 
But  Little  Three  Eyes  had  seen  everything. 
Little  Two  Eyes  now  woke  Little  Three  Eyes, 
and  said  :  — 

'  "  Little  Three  Eyes,  why  do  you  not  watch  ? 
You  have  been  asleep,  and  the  goat  could  have 
run  all  over  the  world.  Come  !  let  us  go  home." 
So  home  they  went,  and  Little  Two  Eyes  again 
did  not  touch  the  dish.  Then  Little  Three 
Eyes  said  to  the  mother :  — 


AND  LITTLE   THREE   EYES.  19 

"  I  know  why  the  proud  thing  does  not  eat. 
She  says  to  the  goat :  '  Little  goat,  bleat ; 
little  table,  rise,'  and  there  stands  a  table  be- 
fore her.  It  is  covered  with  the  very  best  of 
things  to  eat,  much  better  than  anything  we 
have.  When  she  has  had  enough  to  eat,  she 
says :  '  Little  goat,  bleat ;  little  table,  away,' 
and  all  is  gone.  I  have  seen  it  just  as  it  is. 
She  put  two  of  my  eyes  to  sleep  with  a  song, 
but  the  one  in  my  forehead  stayed  awake." 
Then  the  mother  cried  out :  — 

" Shall  she  be  better  off  than  we  are? "  With 
that  she  took  a  knife  and  killed  the  goat. 
Poor  Little  Two  Eyes  went  to  the  field,  and 
sat  down  and  began  to  cry.  All  at  once  the 
wise  woman  stood  near  her,  and  asked  :  — 

"  Little  Two  Eyes,  why  do  you  cry  ?  "  Little 
Two  Eyes  said  :  — 

"  Have  I  not  need  to  cry  ?  My  mother  has 
killed  the  goat.  Now  I  must  suffer  hunger  and 
thirst  again."  The  wise  woman  said  :  — 

"  Little  Two  Eyes,  dry  your  eyes,  and  I  will 
tell  you  what  to  do.  Beg  your  sisters  to  give 
you  the  heart  of  the  goat.  Then  bury  it  in 
the  ground  before  the  door  of  the  house.  All 
will  go  well  with  you."  Then  the  wise  woman 
was  gone,  and  Little  Two  Eyes  went  home  and 
said  to  her  sisters  :  — 

"  Sisters,  give   me   some   part   of   my   goat. 


20     LITTLE   ONE  EYE,  LITTLE   TWO  EYES, 

I  do  not  ask  for  anything  but  the  heart." 
They  laughed,  and  said  :  — 

"  You  can  have  that,  if  you  do  not  want 
anything  else."  Little  Two  Eyes  took  the  heart 
and  buried  it  in  the  ground  before  the  door 
of  the  house. 

Next  morning  the  sisters  woke  and  saw  a 
splendid  tree  in  front  of  the  house.  It  had 
leaves  of  silver  and  fruit  of  gold.  It  was  won- 
derful to  behold;  and  they  could  not  think 
how  the  tree  had  come  there  in  the  night. 
Only  Little  Two  Eyes  saw  that  the  tree  had 
grown  out  of  the  heart  of  the  goat.  Then  the 
mother  said  to  Little  One  Eye:  — 

"  Climb  up,  my  child,  and  pluck  some  fruit 
from  the  tree."  Little  One  Eye  climbed  the 
tree.  She  put  out  her  hand  to  take  a  golden 
apple,  but  the  branch  sprang  back.  This  took 
place  every  time.  Try  as  hard  as  she  could, 
she  could  not  get  a  single  apple.  Then  the 
mother  said:  — 

"  Little  Three  Eyes,  do  you  climb  up.  You 
can  see  better  with  your  three  eyes  than  Lit- 
tle One  Eye  can."  Down  came  Little  One  Eye, 
and  Little  Three  Eyes  climbed  the  tree.  But 
it  was  with  her  just  as  it  had  been  with  Lit- 
tle One  Eye.  She  put  out  her  hand,  and  the 
branch  sprang  back.  At  last  the  mother  tried, 
but  it  was  the  same  with  her.  She  could  not 


AND  LITTLE   THREE  EYES.  21 

get  a  single  apple.  Then  Little  Two  Eyes 
said:  — 

"Let  me  try." 

"  You  !  "  they  all  cried.  "  You,  with  your 
two  eyes  like  other  people !  What  can  you 
do?"  But  Little  Two  Eyes  climbed  the  tree, 
and  the  branch  did  not  spring  back.  The 
golden  apples  dropped  into  her  hands,  and  she 
brought  down  her  apron  full  of  them.  Her 
mother  took  them  away  from  her,  and  her  two 
sisters  were  angry  because  they  had  failed,  and 
they  were  more  cruel  than  ever  to  Little  Two 
Eyes. 

HI. 

THE   PRINCE. 

WHILE  they  stood  by  the  tree,  the  Prince 
came  riding  near  on  a  fine  horse. 

"Quick,  Little  Two  Eyes,"  said  her  sisters, 
"  creep  under  this  cask ;  we  are  ashamed  of 
you  ;  "  and  they  threw  an  empty  cask  over  her, 
and  pushed  the  golden  apples  under  it.  The 
Prince  rode  up  and  gazed  at  the  splendid  tree. 
"  Is  this  splendid  tree  yours  ? "  he  asked  of 
the  sisters.  "If  you  will  give  me  a  branch 
from  it,  I  will  give  you  anything  you  wish." 
Then  Little  One  Eye  and  Little  Three  Eyes 
said  the  tree  was  theirs,  and  they  would  break 


22       LITTLE   ONE  EYE,   LITTLE   TWO  EYES, 

off  a  branch  for  him.  They  put  out  their  hands, 
but  again  the  branches  sprang  back.  Then  the 
Prince  said :  — 

"This  is  very  strange.  The  tree  is  yours, 
and  yet  you  cannot  pluck  the  fruit." 

They  kept  on  saying  that  the  tree  was  theirs, 
but  while  they  were  saying  this,  Little  Two 
Eyes  rolled  a  few  of  the  apples  out  from  un- 
der the  cask.  The  Prince  saw  them,  and 
asked :  — 

"  Why !  where  did  these  golden  apples  come 
from?  Who  is  under  the  cask?"  Little  One 
Eye  and  Little  Three  Eyes  told  the  Prince 
that  they  had  a  sister. 

"  But  she  does  not  show  herself,"  they  said. 
"  She  is  just  like  other  people.  She  has  two 
eyes."  Then  the  Prince  called :  — 

"  Little  Two  Eyes  !  come  out !  "  So  Little 
Two  Eyes  was  very  glad  and  crept  out  from 
under  the  cask. 

"  Can  you  get  me  a  branch  from  the  tree  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  said  Little  Two  Eyes,  "  I  can,  for 
the  tree  is  mine."  Then  she  climbed  the  tree 
and  broke  off  a  branch.  It  had  silver  leaves 
and  golden  fruit,  and  she  gave  it  to  the  Prince. 
Then  the  Prince  said:  — 

"  Little  Two  Eyes,  what  shall  I  give  you  for 
it?" 

"  Oh,"  said  Little  Two  Eyes,  "  I  suffer  hunger 


AND  LITTLE    THREE  EYES.  23 

and  thirst  all  day  long.  If  you  would  take  me 
with  you,  I  should  be  happy." 

So  the  Prince  lifted  Little  Two  Eyes  upon  his 
horse,  and  they  rode  away.  He  took  her  to  his 
father's  house  and  made  her  Princess,  and  she 
had  plenty  to  eat  and  drink  and  good  clothes 
to  wear.  Best  of  all,  the  Prince  loved  her,  and 
she  had  no  more  hard  knocks  and  cross  words. 

Now,  when  Little  Two  Eyes  rode  away  with 
the  Prince,  the  sisters  said :  — 

"  Well,  we  shall  have  the  tree.  We  may  not 
pluck  the  fruit,  but  every  one  will  stop  to  see  it 
and  come  to  us  and  praise  it."  The  next  morn- 
ing they  went  to  look  at  the  tree,  and  it  was 
gone. 

Little  Two  Eyes  lived  long  and  happily. 
One  day,  two  poor  women  came  to  her,  and 
asked  for  something  to  eat.  Little  Two  Eyes 
looked  at  their  faces  and  knew  them.  They 
were  Little  One  Eye  and  Little  Three  Eyes. 
They  were  so  poor  that  they  were  begging  bread 
from  door  to  door.  Little  Two  Eyes  brought 
them  into  the  house  and  was  very  good  to  them. 
Then  they  both  were  sorry  for  the  evil  they  had 
once  done  their  sister. 


24  THE   WIND  AND   THE  SUN. 

THE   CRAB  AND   HIS  MOTHER. 

SAID  his  Mother  to  a  Crab  :  "  Why  do  you 
walk  so  crooked,  child  ?  Walk  straight." 

"  Mother,"  said  he,  "  show  me  the  way,  and 
I  will  try  to  walk  like  you."  But  as  long  as  she 
could  not  walk  straight,  her  son  laughed  at  her 
advice. 

THE  BOYS  AND  THE  FROGS. 

A  COMPANY  of  idle  Boys  were  watching  some 
Frogs  by  the  side  of  a  pond,  and  as  fast  as  any 
of  the  Frogs  lifted  their  heads  the  Boys  would 
pelt  them  down  again  with  stones. 

"  Boys,"  said  one  of  the  Frogs,  "  you  forget 
that,  though  this  may  be  fun  for  you,  it  is  death 
to  us." 

THE  WIND  AND  THE  SUN. 

THE  Wind  and  the  Sun  had  a  dispute  as  to 
which  of  the  two  was  the  stronger ;  they  agreed 
that  the  one  should  be  called  stronger  who 
should  first  make  a  man  in  the  road  take  off 
his  cloak. 

The  Wind  began  to  blow  great  guns,  but  the 
man  only  drew  his  cloak  closer  about  him  to 
keep  out  the  cold.  At  last  the  gust  was  over. 

Then  the  Sun  took  his  turn.  He  shone,  and 
it  was  warm  and  bright.  The  man  opened  his 


LITTLE  RED-RIDING-HOOD.  25 

cloak,  threw  it  back,  and  at  last  took  it  off,  and 
lay  down  in  the  shade  where  it  was  cool. 

So  the  Sun  carried  his  point  against  the  Wind. 

This  fable  teaches  that  it  is  often  easier  to 
persuade  men  than  it  is  to  force  them. 


LITTLE  RED-RIDING-HOOD. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  lived  in  a  certain  vil- 
lage a  little  girl.  Her  mother  was  very  fond  of 
her,  and  her  grandmother  doted  on  her  even 
more.  This  good  old  woman  made  for  her  a 
red  cloak,  which  suited  the  child  so  well  that  ever 
after  she  was  called  Little  Red-Riding-Hood. 

One  day  her  mother  made  some  cakes,  and 
said  to  Little  Red-Riding-Hood :  — 

"  Go,  my  dear,  and  see  how  grandmother 
does,  for  I  hear  that  she  has  been  very  ill. 
Garry  her  a  cake  and  a  little  pot  of  butter." 

Little  Red-Riding-Hood  set  out  at  once  to  go 
to  her  grandmother,  who  lived  in  another  village. 
As  she  was  going  through  the  wood  she  met  a 
large  Wolf.  He  had  a  very  great  mind  to  eat 
her  up ;  but  he  dared  not,  for  there  were  some 
wood-choppers  near  by.  So  he  asked  her  :  — 

"Where  are  you  going,  little  girl?"  The 
poor  child  did  not  know  that  it  was  dangerous 
to  stop  and  talk  with  the  Wolf,  and  she  said :  — 


26  LITTLE  RED-RIDING-HOOD. 

"  I  am  going  to  see  my  grandmother,  and 
carry  her  a  cake  and  a  little  pot  of  butter  from 
my  mother." 

"  Does  she  live  far  off  ?  "  asked  the  Wolf. 

"  Oh,  yes.  It  is  beyond  that  mill  you  see 
there,  at  the  first  house  in  the  village." 

"  Well,"  said  the  Wolf,  "  I  will  go  and  see 
her,  too.  I  will  go  this  way  ;  do  you  go  that, 
and  we  will  see  who  will  be  there  soonest." 

At  this  the  Wolf  began  to  run  as  fast  as  he 
could,  taking  the  nearest  way,  and  Little  Red- 
Riding-Hood  went  by  the  farthest.  She  stopped 
often  to  chase  a  butterfly,  or  pluck  a  flower,  and 
so  she  was  a  good  while  on  the  way.  The  Wolf 
was  soon  at  the  old  woman's  house,  and  knocked 
at  the  door  —  tap,  tap  ! 

"Who  is  there?" 

"  Your  grandchild,  Little  Red-Riding-Hood," 
replied  the  Wolf,  changing  his  voice.  "  I  have 
brought  you  a  cake  and  a  pot  of  butter  from 
mother."  The  good  grandmother,  who  was  ill 
in  bed,  called  out :  — 

"  Pull  the  string,  and  the  latch  will  go  up." 

The  Wolf  pulled  the  string,  and  the  latch  went 
up.  The  door  opened,  and  he  jumped  in,  and 
fell  upon  the  old  woman,  and  ate  her  up  in  less 
than  no  time,  for  he  had  not  tasted  food  for 
three  days.  He  then  shut  the  door,  and  got  into 
the  grandmother's  bed.  By  and  by,  Little  Red- 


LITTLE  RED-RIDING-HOOD.  27 

Riding-Hood  came  and  knocked  at  the  door  — 
tap,  tap ! 

"Who  is  there?" 

Little  Red-Riding-Hood  heard  the  big  voice 
of  the  Wolf,  and  at  first  she  was  afraid.  Then 
she  thought  her  grandmother  must  have  a  bad 
cold,  and  be  very  hoarse,  so  she  answered :  — 
"  Little  Red-Riding-Hood.  I  have  brought 
you  a  cake  and  a  pot  of  butter  from  mother." 
The  Wolf  softened  his  voice  as  much  as  he  could, 
and  called  out :  — 

"  Pull  the  string,  and  the  latch  will  go  up." 
Little  Red-Riding-Hood  pulled  the  string,  and 
the  latch  went  up,  and  the  door  opened.     The 
Wolf  was  hiding  under  the  bed  clothes  and  called 
out  in  a  muffled  voice :  — 

"  Put  the  cake  and  the  pot  of  butter  on  the 
shelf,  and  come  to  bed." 

Little  Red-Riding-Hood  made  ready  for  bed. 
Then  she  looked  with  wonder  at  her  grand- 
mother, who  had  changed  so  much,  and  she 
said:  — 

"  Grandmother,  what  great  arms  you  have !  " 

"  The  better  to  hug  you,  my  dear." 

"  Grandmother,  what  great  ears  you  have  1 " 

"  The  better  to  hear  you,  my  dear." 

"  Grandmother,  what  great  eyes  you  have  !  " 

"  The  better  to  see  you,  my  dear." 

"  Grandmother,  what  great  teeth  you  have !  " 


28      A    COUNTRY  FELLOW  AND   THE  RIVER. 

"  The  better  to  eat  you."  And  at  this  the 
wicked  Wolf  sprang  up  and  fell  upon  poor  Little 
Red-Riding-Hood  and  ate  her  all  up. 


THE  CROW  AND  THE  PITCHER. 

A  CROW  that  was  very  thirsty  found  a  Pitcher 
with  a  little  water  in  it,  but  the  water  lay  so  low 
that  she  could  not  come  at  it. 

She  tried  first  to  break  the  Pitcher,  and  then 
to  overturn  it,  but  it  was  both  too  strong  and 
too  heavy  for  her.  She  thought  at  last  of  a  way, 
for  she  dropped  a  great  many  little  pebbles  into 
the  Pitcher,  and  thus  raised  the  water  until  she 
could  reach  it. 


A  COUNTRY  FELLOW  AND  THE  RIVER. 

A  STUPID  Boy,  who  was  sent  to  market  by  the 
good  old  woman,  his  Mother,  to  sell  butter  and 
cheese,  made  a  stop  by  the  way  at  a  swift  river, 
and  laid  himself  down  on  the  bank  there,  until 
it  should  run  out. 

About  midnight,  home  he  goes  to  his  Mother, 
with  all  his  market  goods  back  again. 

"  Why,  how  now,  my  Son  ? "  says  she. 
"  What  have  we  here  ?" 

"Why,  Mother,  yonder  is  a  river  that  haa 
been  running  all  this  day,  and  I  stayed  till  just 


THE  ELVES  AND   THE  SHOEMAKER.        29 

now,  waiting  for  it  to  run  out ;  and  there  it  is, 
running  still." 

"  My  Son,"  says  the  good  woman,  "  thy  head 
and  mine  will  be  laid  in  the  grave  many  a  day 
before  this  river  has  all  run  by.  You  will  never 
sell  your  butter  and  cheese  if  you  wait  for 
that." 


THE  ELVES  AND  THE  SHOEMAKER. 

THERE  was  once  a  Shoemaker  who  worked  very 
hard  and  was  honest.  Still,  he  could  not  earn 
enough  to  live  on,  and  at  last  all  he  had  in 
the  world  was  gone  except  just  leather  enough 
to  make  one  pair  of  shoes.  He  cut  these  out  at 
night,  and  meant  to  rise  early  the  next  morn- 
ing to  make  them  up. 

His  heart  was  light  amid  all  his  troubles,  for 
his  conscience  was  clear.  So  he  went  quietly  to 
bed,  left  all  his  cares  to  God,  and  fell  asleep. 
In  the  morning  he  said  his  prayers  and  sat  down 
to  work,  when,  to  his  great  wonder,  there  stood 
the  shoes,  already  made,  upon  the  table. 

The  good  man  knew  not  what  to  say  or  think. 
He  looked  at  the  work  ;  there  was  not  one  false 
stitch  in  the  whole  job  ;  all  was  neat  and  true. 

That  same  day  a  customer  came  in,  and  the 
shoes  pleased  him  so  well  that  he  readily  paid  a 
price  higher  than  usual  for  them.  The  Shoe- 


30       THE  ELVES  AND   THE  SHOEMAKER. 

maker  took  the  money  and  bought  leather 
enough  to  make  two  pairs  more.  He  cut  out 
the  work  in  the  evening  and  went  to  bed  early. 
He  wished  to  be  up  with  the  sun  and  get  to 
work. 

He  was  saved  all  trouble,  for  when  he  got  up 
in  the  morning,  the  work  was  done,  ready  to  his 
hand.  Pretty  soon  buyers  came  in,  who  paid 
him  well  for  his  goods.  So  he  bought  leather 
enough  for  four  pairs  more. 

He  cut  out  the  work  again  over  night,  and 
found  it  finished  in  the  morning  as  before.  So 
it  went  on  for  some  time.  What  was  got  ready 
at  night  was  always  done  by  daybreak,  and  the 
good  man  soon  was  well  to  do. 

One  evening,  at  Christmas  time,  he  and  his 
wife  sat  over  the  fire,  chatting,  and  he  said :  — 

"  I  should  like  to  sit  up  and  watch  to-night, 
that  we  may  see  who  it  is  that  comes  and  does 
my  work  for  me."  His  wife  liked  the  thought. 
So  they  left  the  light  burning,  and  hid  them- 
selves behind  a  curtain  to  see  what  would 
happen. 

As  soon  as  it  was  midnight  there  came  two 
little  Elves.  They  sat  upon  the  Shoemaker's 
bench,  took  up  all  the  work  that  was  cut  out, 
and  began  to  ply  their  little  fingers.  They 
stitched  and  rapped  and  tapped  at  such  a  rate 
that  the  Shoemaker  was  all  amazement,  and  could 
not  take  his  eyes  off  them  for  a  moment. 


THE  ELVES  AND  THE  SHOEMAKER.    31 

On  they  went  busily  till  the  job  was  quite 
done,  and  the  shoes  stood,  ready  for  use,  upon 
the  table.  This  was  long  before  daybreak,, 
Then  they  bustled  away  as  quick  as  lightning,, 
The  next  day  the  wife  said  to  the  Shoemaker :  — 

"  These  little  Elves  have  made  us  rich,  and  we 
ought  to  be  thankful  to  them  and  do  them  some 
good  in  return.  I  am  quite  vexed  to  see  them 
run  about  as  they  do.  They  have  nothing  upon 
their  backs  to  keep  off  the  cold.  I  '11  tell  you 
what  we  must  do ;  I  will  make  each  of  them  a 
shirt,  and  a  coat  and  waistcoat,  and  a  pair  of 
pantaloons  into  the  bargain.  Do  you  make  each 
of  them  a  little  pair  of  shoes." 

The  good  Shoemaker  liked  the  thought  very 
well.  One  evening,  he  and  his  wife  had  the 
clothes  ready,  and  laid  them  on  the  table  instead 
of  the  work  they  used  to  cut  out.  Then  they 
went  and  hid  behind  the  curtain  to  watch  what 
the  little  Elves  would  do. 

At  midnight  the  Elves  came  in  and  were  go- 
ing to  sit  down  at  their  work  as  usual;  but 
when  they  saw  the  clothes  lying  there  for  them, 
they  laughed  and  were  in  high  glee.  They 
dressed  themselves  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye, 
and  danced  and  capered  and  sprang  about  as 
merry  as  could  be,  till  at  last  they  danced  out  of 
the  door,  and  over  the  green. 

The  Shoemaker  saw  them  no  more,  but  every- 


32  THE   STAR-GAZER. 

thing  went  well  with  him  from  that  time  forward 
as  long  as  he  lived. 


THE  ASS  IN  THE  LION'S  SKIN. 

THE  Ass  once  dressed  himself  in  the  Lion's 
skin,  and  went  about  scaring  all  the  little  beasts. 
He  met  the  Fox,  and  tried  to  scare  him  too,  but 
the  Fox  stopped,  and  said :  — 

"  Well,  to  be  sure,  I  should  have  been  scared 
like  the  others,  if  I  had  not  heard  you  bray  and 
seen  your  ears  stick  out." 


THE   STAR-GAZER. 

A  CERTAIN  wise  man  was  wont  to  go  out  every 
evening  and  gaze  at  the  stars.  Once  his  walk 
took  him  outside  of  the  town,  and  as  he  was 
looking  with  all  his  eyes  into  the  sky,  and  did 
not  see  where  he  was  going,  he  fell  into  a  ditch. 

He  was  in  a  sad  plight,  and  set  up  a  cry.  A 
man  who  was  passing  by  heard  him,  and  stopped 
to  see  what  was  the  matter. 

"  Ah,  sir,"  said  he,  "  when  you  are  trying  to 
make  out  what  is  in  the  sky,  you  do  not  see 
what  is  on  the  earth." 


THE  BOY  WHO  STOLE  APPLES.     33 


THE  BOY  AND  THE  NETTLE. 

A  BOY  playing  in  the  fields  was  stung  by  a 
Nettle.  He  ran  home  to  his  Mother,  and  told 
her  that  he  had  but  touched  the  weed,  and  it 
had  stung  him. 

"  It  was  just  touching  it  that  stung  you," 
said  she.  "  The  next  time  you  meddle  with  a 
Nettle,  grasp  it  boldly,  and  it  will  not  hurt  you." 


THE  DOG  IN  THE  MANGER. 

A  DOG  once  made  his  bed  in  a  manger.  He 
could  not  eat  the  grain  there,  and  he  would  not 
let  the  Ox  eat  it,  who  could. 


THE  BOY  WHO  STOLE  APPLES. 

AN  Old  Man  found  a  rude  Boy  up  in  one  of 
his  trees,  stealing  apples,  and  bade  him  come 
down.  The  young  rogue  told  him  plainly  that 
he  would  not. 

"Won't  you?"  said  the  Old  Man.  "Then 
I  will  fetch  you  down."  So  he  pulled  up  some 
tufts  of  grass  and  threw  them  at  him  ;  but  this 
only  made  the  youngster  laugh. 

"  Well,  well,"  said  the  Old  Man.  If  neither 
words  nor  grass  will  do,  I  will  try  what  virtue 
there  is  in  stones,"  With  that  he  pelted  the 


34  HANS  IN  LUCK. 

Boy  heartily  with  stones,  which  soon  made  him 
clamber  down  from  the  tree  and  beg  the  Old 
Man's  pardon. 


HANS  IN  LUCK. 


THE  SILVER,  THE  HORSE,  THE  COW,  AND  THE 
PIG. 

HANS  had  served  his  master  seven  years,  and 
at  last  said  to  him  :  — 

"  Master,  my  time  is  up ;  I  should  like  to  go 
home  and  see  my  mother;  so  give  me  my 
wages."  And  the  Master  said  :  — 

"  You  have  been  a  good  and  faithful  servant, 
so  your  pay  shall  be  handsome."  Then  he  gave 
him  a  piece  of  silver  as  big  as  his  head. 

Hans  took  out  his  handkerchief,  put  the  piece 
of  silver  into  it,  hung  it  over  his  shoulder,  and 
jogged  off  homeward.  As  he  went  lazily  on, 
dragging  one  foot  after  the  other,  a  man  came 
in  sight,  trotting  along  gayly  on  a  capital  horse. 

"  Ah !  "  said  Hans  aloud,  "  what  a  fine  thing 
it  is  to  ride  on  horseback  !  there  he  sits  as  if  he 
were  at  home  in  his  chair ;  he  trips  against  no 
stones,  spares  his  shoes,  and  gets  on  he  hardly 
knows  how."  The  Horseman  heard  this,  and 
said:  — 


HANS  IN  LUCK.  35 

"  Well,  Hans,  why  do  you  go  on  foot  then  ?  " 

"  Ah,"  said  he,  "  I  have  this  load  to  carry ; 
to  be  sure  it  is  silver,  but  it  is  so  heavy  that  I 
cannot  hold  up  my  head,  and  it  hurts  my  shoul- 
'der  sadly." 

"  What  do  you  say  to  changing  ?  "  asked  the 
Horseman.  "  I  will  give  you  my  horse,  and  you 
shall  give  me  your  silver." 

"  With  aU  my  heart,"  said  Hans.  « But  I 
will  tell  you  one  thing  —  you  will  have  a  weary 
task  to  drag  it  along."  The  Horseman  got  off, 
took  the  silver,  helped  Hans  up,  put  the  bridle 
into  his  hand,  and  said  :  — 

"  When  you  want  to  go  very  fast,  you  must 
smack  your  lips,  and  cry  '  Jip.'  " 

Hans  was  delighted  as  he  sat  on  the  horse  and 
rode  merrily  on.  After  a  time  he  thought  he 
should  like  to  go  a  little  faster,  so  he  smacked 
his  lips  and  cried  "  Jip."  Away  went  the  horse 
full  gallop  ;  Hans  held  on  tightly,  but  soon  he 
was  thrown  off,  and  lay  in  a  ditch  by  the  road- 
side. His  horse  would  have  run  away,  if  a  Cow- 
herd had  not  stopped  it.  Hans  soon  came  to 
himself,  and  got  upon  his  legs  again.  He  was 
greatly  vexed,  and  said  to  the  Cowherd :  — 

"  This  riding  is  no  joke  when  a  man  gets  on 
a  beast  like  this,  that  stumbles  and  flings  him  off 
and  tries  to  break  his  neck.  However,  I  am  off 
now  once  for  all.  I  like  your  cow  a  great  deal 


36  HANS  IN  LUCK. 

better.  I  could  walk  along  at  my  ease  behind 
her,  and  have  milk,  butter,  and  cheese  every  day 
into  the  bargain.  What  would  I  give  to  have 
such  a  cow  ! " 

"  Well,"  said  the  Cowherd,  "  if  you  are  so 
fond  of  her,  I  will  change  my  cow  for  your 
horse." 

"  Done  !  "  said  Hans  merrily.  The  Cowherd 
jumped  upon  the  horse  and  away  he  rode. 
Hans  drove  his  cow  quietly,  and  thought  his 
bargain  a  very  lucky  one. 

"  If  I  have  only  a  piece  of  bread  —  and  I  cer- 
tainly shall  be  able  to  get  that  —  I  can  eat  my 
butter  and  cheese  with  it.  When  I  am  thirsty  I 
can  milk  my  cow  and  drink  the  milk.  What  can 
I  wish  for  more  ?  " 

Now  he  came  to  an  inn  ;  he  halted,  and  gave 
away  his  last  penny  for  a  piece  of  bread,  and  ate 
it.  Then  he  drove  his  cow  toward  the  village 
where  his  mother  lived.  The  heat  grew  greater 
as  noon  came  on,  till  at  last  he  found  himself  on 
a  wide  plain  ;  it  would  take  him  more  than  an 
hour  to  cross  the  plain.  He  began  to  be  so  hot 
and  parched  that  his  tongue  cleaved  to  the  roof 
of  his  mouth. 

"  I  can  find  a  cure  for  this,"  thought  he ; 
"  now  I  will  milk  my  cow  and  quench  my  thirst." 
So  he  tied  her  to  the  stump  of  a  tree,  and  held 
his  leathern  cap  to  milk  into  it ;  but  not  a  drop 
was  to  be  had. 


HANS   IN  LUCK.  37 

While  he  was  trying  his  luck  and  doing  very 
ill,  the  uneasy  beast  gave  him  a  kick  on  the 
head ;  the  kick  knocked  him  down,  and  there  he 
lay  a  long  time  senseless.  Luckily  a  Butcher 
soon  came  by,  wheeling  a  pig  in  a  wheelbarrow. 

"  What  is  the  matter  with  you  ?  "  asked  the 
Butcher,  as  he  helped  him  up.  Hans  told  him 
what  had  happened,  and  the  Butcher  gave  him 
some  water. 

"  There,  drink  and  refresh  yourself.  Your 
cow  will  give  you  no  milk  ;  she  is  an  old  beast, 
fit  only  to  be  killed  and  eaten." 

"  Alas,  alas  !  "  said  Hans.  "  Who  would 
have  thought  it  ?  If  I  kill  her,  what  would  she 
be  good  for  ?  I  hate  cow-beef ;  it  is  not  tender 
enough  for  me.  If  it  were  a  pig  now,  I  could 
do  something  with  it ;  it  would  at  any  rate  make 
some  sausages." 

"  Well, "  said  the  Butcher,  "  to  please  you,  I 
will  change,  and  give  you  the  pig  for  the  cow." 

"  Heaven  reward  you  for  your  kindness  !  "  said 
Hans,  as  he  gave  the  Butcher  the  cow.  He 
took  the  pig  off  the  wheelbarrow,  and  drove  it 
along,  holding  it  by  the  string  that  was  tied  to 
its  leg. 


38  HANS  IN  LUCK. 

H. 

THE   PIG,   THE   GOOSE,   THE   GRINDSTONE,    AND 
NOTHING. 

So  on  he  jogged,  and  all  seemed  now  to  go 
well  with  him.  He  had  met  with  some  ill  luck,  to 
be  sure,  but  he  was  now  well  repaid.  The  next 
person  he  met  was  a  Farmer  carrying  a  fine  white 
goose  under  his  arm.  The  Farmer  stopped  to 
ask  what  o'clock  it  was,  and  Hans  told  him  all 
his  luck,  and  how  he  had  made  so  many  good 
bargains.  The  Farmer  said  he  was  going  to  take 
the  goose  to  market. 

"  Feel,"  said  he,  "  how  heavy  it  is,  and  yet  it 
is  only  eight  weeks  old.  Whoever  roasts  and 
eats  it  may  cut  plenty  of  fat  off  it,  it  has  lived 
so  well." 

"  You  are  right,"  said  Hans,  as  he  weighed 
the  goose  in  his  hand ;  "  but  my  pig  is  no  tri- 
fle." Now  the  Farmer  began  to  look  grave,  and 
shook  his  head. 

"  Hark  ye,  my  good  friend,"  said  he.  "  Your 
pig  may  get  you  into  a  scrape.  In  the  village  I 
just  came  from  the  squire  has  had  a  pig  stolen 
out  of  his  sty.  I  was  very  much  afraid  when  I 
saw  you  that  you  had  the  squire's  pig.  It  will 
be  a  bad  job  if  they  catch  you ;  the  least  they 
will  do  will  be  to  throw  you  into  the  horse 
pond."  Poor  Hans  was  in  great  fright. 


HANS  IN  LUCK.  39 

"  Good  man,"  he  cried,  "  pray  get  me  out  of 
this  scrape.  You  know  the  country  better  than 
I ;  take  my  pig  and  give  me  the  goose," 

"  I  ought  to  have  something  into  the  bargain,'' 
said  the  Farmer.  "  However,  I  will  not  be  hard 
upon  you,  since  you  are  in  trouble."  Then  he 
took  the  string  in  his  hand,  and  drove  the  pig 
away  by  a  side  path,  while  Hans  went  on,  free 
from  care. 

"  After  all,"  thought  Hans,  "  I  have  the  best 
of  the  bargain.  First,  there  will  be  a  capital 
roast ;  then  the  fat  will  keep  me  in  goose-grease 
for  six  months ;  and  there  are  all  the  soft  white 
feathers.  I  will  put  them  into  my  pillow,  and 
then  I  shall  sleep  soundly.  How  happy  my 
mother  will  be  !  " 

As  he  came  to  the  last  village  on  the  way,  he 
saw  a  Scissors-grinder  with  his  wheel,  working 
away  and  singing  merrily.  Hans  stood  by  look- 
ing on  for  a  while,  and  at  last  said  :  — 

"  You  must  be  well  off,  Master  Grinder,  you 
seem  so  happy  at  your  work." 

"  Yes,"  said  the  other ;  "  mine  is  a  golden 
trade ;  a  good  grinder  never  puts  his  hand  into 
his  pocket  without  finding  money.  But  where 
did  you  get  that  beautiful  goose  ?  " 

"  I  did  not  buy  it,  but  changed  a  pig  for  it." 

"  And  where  did  you  get  the  pig  ?  " 

"  I  gave  a  cow  for  it." 


40  HANS  IN  LUCK. 

"And  the  cow?" 

"  I  gave  a  horse  for  it." 

"  And  the  horse  ?  " 

"  I  gave  a  piece  of  silver  as  big  as  my  head 
for  that." 

"And  the  silver?" 

"  Oh,  I  worked  hard  for  that  for  seven  long 
years." 

"  You  have  done  well  so  far,"  said  the 
Grinder.  "  Now  if  you  could  find  money  in 
your  pocket  whenever  you  put  your  hand  into 
it,  your  fortune  would  be  made." 

"  Very  true ;  but  how  is  that  to  be  brought 
about?" 

"  You  must  turn  grinder  like  me.  You  only 
want  a  grindstone ;  the  rest  will  come  of  itself. 
Here  is  one  that  is  a  little  the  worse  for  wear ;  I 
would  not  ask  more  than  your  goose  for  it ;  — 
will  you  buy  ?  " 

"  How  can  you  ask  such  a  question  ?  "  replied 
Hans ;  "  I  should  be  the  happiest  fellow  in  the 
world,  if  I  could  have  money  whenever  I  put  my 
hand  into  my  pocket.  What  could  I  want  more  ? 
There  is  the  goose  !  " 

"  Now,"  said  the  Grinder,  as  he  gave  him  a 
common  rough  stone  that  lay  by  his  side,  "  this 
is  a  capital  stone  ;  only  use  it  cleverly,  and  you 
can  make  an  old  nail  cut  with  it."  Hans  took 
the  stone,  and  went  off  with  a  light  heart.  His 
eyes  shone  for  joy,  and  he  said  to  himself :  — 


THE  LION  AND   THE  MOUSE.  41 

"  I  must  have  been  born  in  a  lucky  hour. 
Everything  I  want  or  wish  for  comes  to  me  of 
itself." 

Now  Hans  began  to  be  tired,  for  he  had  been 
traveling  ever  since  daybreak.  He  was  hungry, 
too,  for  he  had  spent  his  last  penny.  At  last 
he  could  go  no  further,  for  the  stone  was  very 
heavy.  He  dragged  himself  to  the  side  of  a 
pond ;  there  he  meant  to  drink  some  water  and 
rest  awhile.  He  laid  the  stone  carefully  by  his 
side  on  the  bank,  and  stooped  to  drink  ;  but  he 
forgot  the  stone  and  pushed  it  a  little ;  down  it 
went  plump  into  the  pond. 

For  a  while  he  watched  it  in  the  deep  clear 
water  ;  then  he  sprang  up  for  joy,  and  again  fell 
on  his  knees  and  thanked  Heaven  with  tears  in 
his  eyes  for  taking  away  his  only  plague,  the 
ugly  heavy  stone. 

"  How  happy  I  am  ! "  he  cried.  "  Surely  no 
mortal  was  ever  so  lucky  as  I."  Then  he  got 
up  with  a  light  and  merry  heart,  and  walked 
on,  free  from  all  his  troubles,  till  he  reached  his 
mother's  house. 


THE  LION  AND  THE  MOUSE. 

As  a  Lion  lay  asleep,  a  Mouse,  by  chance, 
ran  into  his  mouth.  The  Lion  shut  his  teeth 
together  and  would  have  eaten  him  up,  but  the 
Mouse  begged  hard  to  be  let  out,  saying  :  — 


42  THE  LION  AND   THE  BEAR. 

"If  you  will  let  me  go,  I  shall  be  forever  grate- 
ful." 

The  Lion  smiled,  and  let  the  Mouse  out. 
Not  long  after,  the  Mouse  had  a  chance  to  re- 
pay him,  for  the  Lion  was  caught  by  some  hunt-' 
ers,  and  bound  with  ropes  to  a  tree.  The 
Mouse  heard  him  roar  and  groan,  and  ran  and 
gnawed  the  ropes,  so  that  the  Lion  got  free. 

Then  the  Mouse  said  :  — 

"  You  laughed  at  me  once,  Lion,  as  if  you 
could  get  nothing  in  return  for  your  kindness 
to  me,  but  now  it  is  you  who  owe  your  life  to 
me." 

This  fable  teaches  that  there  may  come  sud- 
den changes  of  fortune,  when  the  strong  will 
owe  everything  to  the  weak. 


THE  LION  AND  THE  BEAR. 

A  LION  and  a  Bear  chanced  to  fall  upon  a 
Fawn  at  the  same  time,  and  they  began  to 
fight  for  it.  They  fought  so  fiercely  that  at 
last  they  fell  down,  entirely  worn  out  and  al- 
most dead. 

A  Fox,  passing  that  way,  saw  them  stretched 
out,  and  the  Fawn  dead  between  them.  He 
stole  in  slyly,  seized  the  Fawn,  and  ran  away 
with  it  for  his  own  dinner.  When  they  saw 
this,  they  could  not  stir,  but  they  cried  out :  — 


THE  DOG  AND    THE    WOLF.  43 

"  What  wretches  we  are  to  take  all  this  trou- 
ble for  the  Fox  !  " 

This  fable  teaches  that  when  two  people  fall 
to  fighting  for  something,  a  third  person  is  apt 
fco  get  it. 


THE  HUNTER  AND  THE  WOODCUTTER. 

A  HUNTER  was  looking  for  the  tracks  of  a 
Lion,  and  he  asked  a  Woodcutter  whom  he  met 
if  he  had  seen  any  tracks  of  a  Lion,  and  if  he 
knew  where  the  Lion  was  hid.  The  Woodcutter 
said:  — 

"  Oh,  I  can  show  you  the  Lion  himself." 

Then  the  Hunter  was  pale  with  fright,  his 
teeth  chattered,  and  he  said  :  — 

"  I  only  want  to  see  his  tracks ;  I  don't  want 
to  see  the  Lion." 

There  are  those  who  are  brave  with  words 
only,  and  not  with  deeds. 

THE  DOG  AND  THE  WOLF. 

A  DOG  was  lying  asleep  in  front  of  a  stable. 
A  Wolf  suddenly  came  upon  him,  and  was 
about  to  make  a  meal  of  him,  but  the  Dog 
begged  for  his  life,  saying  : — 

"  I  am  lean  and  tough  now ;  but  wait  a  little, 
for  my  master  is  going  to  give  a  feast,  and  then 


44  JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK. 

I  shall  have  plenty  to  eat ;  I  shall  grow  fat,  and 
make  a  better  meal  for  you." 

So  the  Wolf  agreed,  and  went  away.  By  and 
by  he  came  back,  and  found  the  Dog  asleep  on 
the  house-top.  He  called  to  him  to  come  down 
now  and  do  as  he  had  agreed.  But  the  Dog 
answered :  — 

"  Good  Wolf,  if  you  ever  catch  me  again 
asleep  in  front  of  the  stable,  you  had  better  not 
wait  for  the  feast  to  come  off." 

This  fable  teaches  that  wise  men,  when  they 
escape  danger,  take  care  afterwards  not  to  run 
the  same  risk. 


JACK  AND  THE  BEAN-STALK. 


THE   BEANS    ARE    PLANTED. 

IN  the  days  of  King  Alfred  a  poor  woman 
was  living  in  a  country  village  in  England.  She 
had  an  only  son,  Jack,  who  was  a  good-natured, 
idle  boy.  She  was  too  easy  with  him.  She 
never  set  him  at  work,  and  soon  there  was 
nothing  left  them  but  their  cow.  Then  the 
mother  began  to  weep  and  to  think  that  she 
had  brought  up  her  boy  very  ill. 

"  Cruel  boy !  "  she  said.  "  You  have  at  last 
made  me  a  beggar.  I  have  not  money  enough 


JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK.  45 

to  buy  a  bit  of  bread.  We  cannot  starve.  We 
must  sell  the  cow,  and  then,  what  shall  we  do  ?  " 

At  first  Jack  felt  very  badly  and  wished  he 
had  done  better.  But  soon  he  began  to  think 
what  fun  it  would  be  to  sell  the  cow.  He 
begged  his  mother  to  let  him  go  with  the  cow 
at  once  to  the  nearest  village.  She  was  not 
very  willing.  She  did  not  believe  Jack  knew 
enough  to  sell  a  cow,  but  at  last  she  gave  him 
leave. 

Off  went  Jack  with  the  cow.  He  had  not 
gone  far  when  he  met  a  Butcher. 

"  Where  are  you  going  with  your  cow  ? " 
asked  the  Butcher. 

"I  am  going  to  sell  it,"  said  Jack.  The 
Butcher,  as  they  talked,  held  his  hat  in  his 
hand  and  shook  it.  Jack  looked  into  the  hat 
and  saw  some  odd-looking  beans.  The  Butcher 
saw  him  eye  them.  He  knew  how  silly  Jack 
was,  so  he  said  to  him  :  — 

"  Well,  if  you  wish  to  sell  your  cow,  sell  her 
to  me.  I  will  give  you  all  these  beans  for  her." 

Jack  thought  this  a  fine  bargain.  He  gave 
the  Butcher  the  cow  and  took  the  beans.  He 
ran  all  the  way  home  and  could  hardly  wait  to 
reach  the  house.  He  called  out  to  his  mother 
to  see  what  he  had  got  for  the  cow. 

When  the  poor  woman  saw  only  a  few  beans, 
she  burst  into  tears.  She  was  so  vexed  that  she 


46  JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK. 

threw  the  beans  out  of  the  window.  She  did 
not  even  cook  them  for  supper.  They  had 
nothing  else  to  eat  and  they  went  to  bed  hungry. 

Jack  awoke  early  the  next  morning  and  thought 
it  very  dark.  He  went  to  the  window  and  could 
hardly  see  out  of  it,  for  it  was  covered  with 
something  green.  He  ran  down  stairs  and  into 
the  garden.  There  he  saw  a  strange  sight. 

The  beans  had  taken  root  and  shot  up  toward 
the  clouds.  The  stalks  were  as  thick  as  trees, 
and  were  wound  about  each  other.  It  was  like 
a  green  ladder,  and  Jack  at  once  wished  to 
climb  to  the  top. 

He  ran  in  to  tell  his  mother,  but  she  begged 
him  not  to  climb  the  bean-stalk.  She  did  not 
know  what  woidd  happen.  She  was  afraid  to 
have  him  go.  Who  ever  saw  such  bean-stalks 
before  ? 

But  Jack  had  set  his  heart  on  climbing,  and 
he  told  his  mother  not  to  be  afraid.  He  would 
soon  see  what  it  all  meant.  So  up  he  climbed. 
He  climbed  for  hours.  He  went  higher  and 
higher,  and  at  last,  quite  tired  out,  he  reached 
the  top. 

II. 

JACK    CAPTURES   A    HEN. 

THEN  he  looked  about  him.  It  was  all  new. 
He  had  never  seen  such  a  place  before.  There 


JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK.  47 

was  not  a  tree  or  plant ;  there  was  no  house  or 
shed.  Some  stones  lay  here  and  there,  and 
there  were  little  piles  of  earth.  He  could  not 
see  a  living  person. 

Jack  sat  down  on  one  of  the  stones.  He 
wished  he  were  at  home  again.  He  thought  of 
his  mother.  He  was  hungry,  and  he  did  not 
know  where  to  get  anything  to  eat.  He  walked 
and  walked,  and  hoped  he  might  see  a  house. 

He  saw  no  house,  but  at  last  he  saw,  far  off, 
a  lady  walking  alone.  He  ran  toward  her,  and 
when  he  came  near,  he  pulled  off  his  cap  and 
made  a  bow.  She  was  a  beautiful  lady,  and 
she  carried  in  her  hand  a  stick.  A  peacock  of 
fine  gold  sat  on  top  of  the  stick. 

The  lady  smiled  and  asked  Jack  how  he  came 
there.  He  told  her  all  about  the  bean-stalk. 
Then  she  said  :  — 

"  Do  you  remember  your  father  ?  " 

"  No,"  said  Jack.  "  I  do  not  know  what 
became  of  him.  When  I  speak  of  him  to  my 
mother,  she  cries,  but  she  tells  me  nothing." 

"  She  dare  not,"  said  the  lady,  "  but  I  will 
tell  you.  I  am  a  fairy.  I  was  set  to  take  care 
of  your  father,  but  one  day  I  was  careless.  So 
I  lost  my  power  for  a  few  years,  and  just  when 
your  father  needed  me  most  I  could  not  help 
him,  and  he  died." 

Jack  saw  that  she  was  very  sorry  as  she  told 
this  story,  but  he  begged  her  to  go  on. 


48  JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK. 

"  I  will,"  she  said,  "  and  you  may  now  help 
your  mother.  But  you  must  do  just  as  I  tell 
you." 

Jack  promised. 

"  Your  father  was  a  good,  kind  man.  He 
had  a  good  wife,  he  had  money,  and  he  had 
friends.  But  he  had  one  false  friend.  This 
was  a  Giant.  Your  father  had  once  helped  this 
Giant,  but  the  Giant  was  cruel.  He  killed  your 
father  and  took  all  his  money.  And  he  told 
your  mother  she  must  never  tell  you  about  your 
father.  If  she  did,  then  the  Giant  would  kill 
her  and  kill  you  too. 

"  You  were  a  little  child  then,  and  your 
mother  carried  you  away  in  her  arms.  I  could 
not  help  her  at  the  tune,  but  my  power  came 
back  to  me  yesterday.  So  I  made  you  go  off 
with  the  cow,  and  I  made  you  take  the  beans, 
and  I  made  you  climb  the  bean-stalk. 

"  This  is  the  land  where  the  Giant  lives.  You 
must  find  him  and  rid  the  world  of  him.  All 
that  he  has  is  yours,  for  he  took  it  from  your 
father.  Now  go.  You  must  keep  on  this  road 
till  you  see  a  great  house.  The  Giant  lives  there. 
I  cannot  tell  you  what  you  must  do  next,  but 
I  will  help  you  when  the  tune  comes ;  but  you 
must  not  tell  your  mother  anything." 

The  fairy  disappeared  and  Jack  set  out.  He 
walked  all  day,  and  when  the  sun  set,  he  came  to 


JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK.  49 

the  Giant's  house.  He  went  up  to  it  and  saw 
a  plain  woman  by  the  door.  This  was  the  Gi- 
ant's wife.  Jack  spoke  to  her  and  asked  her 
if  she  would  give  him  something  to  eat  and  a 
place  where  he  could  sleep. 

"What!"  she  said.  "Do  you  not  know? 
My  husband  is  a  Giant.  He  is  away  now,  but 
he  will  be  back  soon.  Sometimes  he  walks  fifty 
miles  in  a  day  to  see  if  he  can  find  a  man  or 
a  boy.  He  eats  people.  He  will  eat  you  if  he 
finds  you  here." 

Jack  was  in  great  fear,  but  he  would  not 
give  up.  He  asked  the  Giant's  wife  to  hide  him 
somewhere  in  the  house.  She  was  a  kind  wo- 
man, so  she  led  him  in.  They  went  through 
a  great  hall,  and  then  through  some  large  rooms. 
All  was  grand  and  gloomy.  They  came  to  a 
dark  passage,  and  went  through  it.  There  was 
a  little  light,  and  Jack  could  see  bars  of  iron 
at  the  side.  Behind  the  bars  were  wretched 
people.  They  were  the  prisoners  of  the  Giant. 

Poor  Jack  thought  of  his  mother  and  wished 
himself  at  home  again.  He  began  to  think 
the  Giant's  wife  was  as  bad  as  the  Giant,  and 
had  brought  him  in  to  shut  him  up  here.  Then 
he  thought  of  his  father  and  marched  boldly  on. 

They  came  to  a  room  where  a  table  was  set. 
Jack  sat  down  and  began  to  eat.  He  was  very 
hungry  and  soon  forgot  his  fears.  But  while 


50  JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK. 

he  was  eating,  there  came  a  loud  knock  at  the 
outside  door.  It  was  so  loud  that  the  whole 
house  shook.  The  Giant's  wife  turned  pale. 

"What  shall  I  do?"  she  cried.  "It  is  the 
Giant.  He  will  kill  you  and  kill  me  too  !  What 
shall  I  do?" 

"  Hide  me  in  the  oven,"  said  Jack.  There 
was  no  fire  under  it,  and  Jack  lay  in  the  oven 
and  looked  out.  The  Giant  came  in  and  scolded 
his  wife,  and  then  he  sat  down  and  ate  and  drank 
for  a  long  time.  Jack  thought  he  never  would 
finish.  At  last  the  Giant  leaned  back  in  his 
chair  and  called  out  in  a  great  loud  voice :  — 

"  Bring  me  my  hen  !  " 

His  wife  brought  a  beautiful  hen  and  placed 
it  on  the  table. 

"  Lay  !  "  roared  the  Giant,  and  the  hen  laid  an 
egg  of  solid  gold. 

"  Lay  another ! "  and  the  hen  laid  another. 
So  it  went  on.  Each  time  the  hen  laid  a 
larger  egg  than  before.  The  Giant  played  with 
the  hen  for  some  time.  Then  he  sent  his  wife 
to  bed,  but  he  sat  in  his  chair.  Soon  he  fell 
asleep,  and  then  Jack  crept  out  of  the  oven  and 
seized  the  hen.  He  ran  out  of  the  house  and 
down  the  road.  He  kept  on  till  he  came  again 
to  the  bean-stalk,  and  climbed  down  to  his  old 
home. 


JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK.  51 

III. 


JACK'S  mother  was  very  glad  to  see  him.  She 
was  afraid  that  he  had  come  to  some  ill  end. 

"  Not  a  bit  of  it,  mother,"  said  he.  "  Look 
here ! "  and  he  showed  her  the  hen.  "  Lay ! " 
he  said  to  the  hen,  and  the  hen  laid  an  egg 
of  gold. 

Jack  and  his  mother  now  had  all  they  needed, 
for  they  had  only  to  teU  the  hen  to  lay,  and 
she  laid  her  golden  egg.  They  sold  the  egg 
and  had  money  enough.  But  Jack  kept  think- 
ing of  his  father,  and  he  longed  to  make  anothei 
trial.  He  had  told  his  mother  about  the  Giant 
and  his  wife,  but  he  had  said  nothing  about 
the  fairy  and  his  father. 

His  mother  begged  Jack  not  to  climb  the  bean- 
stalk again.  She  said  the  Giant's  wife  would  be 
sure  to  know  him,  and  he  never  would  come 
back  alive.  Jack  said  nothing,  but  he  put  on 
some  other  clothes  and  stained  his  face  and 
hands  another  color.  Then  one  morning  he 
rose  early  and  climbed  the  bean-stalk  a  second 
tune. 

He  went  now  straight  to  the  Giant's  house. 
The  Giant's  wife  was  again  at  the  door,  but  she 
did  not  know  him.  He  begged  for  food  and  a 


52  JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK. 

place  to  sleep.  She  told  him  about  the  Giant, 
and  then  she  said  :  — 

"  There  was  once  a  boy  who  came  just  as  you 
have  come.  I  let  him  in,  and  he  stole  the 
Giant's  hen  and  ran  away.  Ever  since  the 
Giant  has  been  very  cruel  to  me.  No,  I  cannot 
let  you  come  in." 

But  Jack  begged  so  hard  that  at  last  she  let 
him  in.  She  led  him  through  the  house,  and 
he  saw  just  what  he  saw  before.  She  gave  him 
something  to  eat,  and  then  she  hid  him  in  a 
closet.  The  Giant  came  along  in  his  heavy 
boots.  He  was  so  big,  that  the  house  shook. 
He  sat  by  the  fire  for  a  time.  Then  he  looked 
about  and  said :  — 

"  Wife,  I  smeU  fresh  meat." 

"  Yes,"  she  said.  "  The  crows  have  been  fly- 
ing about.  They  left  some  raw  meat  on  top 
of  the  house."  Then  she  made  haste  and  got 
some  supper  for  the  Giant.  He  kept  talking 
about  his  hen,  and  was  very  cross.  So  it  went 
on  as  before.  The  Giant  ate  and  drank.  Then 
he  called  to  his  wife  :  — 

"  Bring  me  something.  I  want  to  be  amused. 
You  let  that  rascal  steal  my  hen.  Bring  me 
something." 

"  What  shall  I  bring  ?  "  she  asked  meekly. 

"  Bring  me  my  money  -  bags ;  they  are  as 
heavy  as  anything."  So  she  tugged  two  great 


JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK.  53 

bags  to  the  table.     One  was  full  of  silver  and 

o 

one  was  full  of  gold.     The  Giant  sent  his  wife 
to  bed.     Then  he  untied  the  strings,  emptied  his 
bags,  and  counted   his  money.     Jack   watched 
him,  and  said  to  himself :  — 
f     "  That  is  my  father's  money." 

By  and  by  the  Giant  was  tired.  He  put  the 
money  back  into  the  bags  and  tied  the  strings, 
and  then  he  went  to  sleep.  He  had  a  dog  to 
watch  his  money,  but  Jack  did  not  see  the 
dog.  So  when  the  Giant  was  sound  asleep,  Jack 
came  out  of  the  closet  and  laid  hold  of  the 


At  this  the  dog  barked,  and  Jack  thought  his 
end  had  come.  But  the  Giant  did  not  wake, 
and  Jack  just  then  saw  a  bit  of  meat.  He  gave 
it  to  the  dog,  and  while  the  dog  was  eating  it, 
Jack  took  the  two  bags  and  was  off. 


IV. 

THE    HARP. 

IT  was  two  whole  days  before  he  could  reach 
the  bean-stalk,  for  the  bags'  were  very  heavy. 
Then  he  climbed  down  with  them.  But  when 
he  came  to  his  house  the  door  was  locked.  No 
one  was  inside,  and  he  knew  not  what  to  do. 

After  a  while   he  found  an  old  woman  who 


54  JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK. 

showed  him  where  his  mother  was.  She  was 
very  sick  in  another  house.  The  poor  thing  had 
been  made  ill  by  Jack's  going  away,  but  now 
that  he  had  come  back,  she  began  to  get  well,  and 
soon  she  was  in  her  own  house  again. 

Jack  said  no  more  about  the  Giant  and  the 
bean-stalk.  For  three  years  he  lived  with  his 
mother.  They  had  money  enough,  and  all 
seemed  well.  But  Jack  could  not  forget  his 
father.  He  sat  all  day  before  the  bean-stalk. 
His  mother  tried  hard  to  amuse  him,  and  she 
tried  to  find  out  what  he  was  thinking  about. 
He  did  not  tell  her,  for  he  knew  all  would  then 
go  wrong. 

At  last  he  could  bear  it  no  longer.  He  had 
changed  in  looks  now,  and  he  changed  himself 
still  more.  Then,  one  bright  summer  morning, 
very  early  in  the  day,  he  climbed  the  bean-stalk 
once  more.  The  Giant's  wife  did  not  know  him 
when  he  came  to  the  door  of  the  house,  but  he 
had  hard  work  to  make  her  let  him  in. 

This  time  he  was  hidden  in  the  copper  boiler. 
The  Giant  again  came  home,  and  was  in  a  great 
rage. 

"  I  smell  fresh  meat !  "  he  cried.  His  wife 
could  do  nothing  with  him,  and  he  began  to  go 
about  the  room.  He  looked  into  the  oven,  and 
into  the  closet,  and  then  he  came  to  the  great 
boiler.  Jack  felt  his  heart  stop.  He  thought 


JACK  AND   THE  BEAN-STALK.  55 

now  his  end  had  coine,  surely.  But  the  Giant 
did  not  lift  the  lid.  He  sat  down  by  the  fire 
and  had  his  supper. 

When  supper  was  over,  the  Giant  told  his 
wife  to  bring  his  harp.  Jack  peeped  out  of  the 
copper  and  saw  a  most  beautiful  harp.  The 
Giant  placed  it  on  the  table,  and  said :  — • 

"Play!" 

Jack  never  heard  such  music  as  the  harp 
played.  No  hands  touched  it.  It  played  all  by 
itself.  He  thought  he  would  rather  have  this 
harp  than  the  hen  or  all  the  money.  By  and  by 
the  harp  played  the  Giant  to  sleep.  Then  Jack 
crept  out  and  seized  the  harp.  He  was  running 
off  with  it,  when  some  one  called  loudly  :  — 

"Master!  Master!" 

It  was  the  harp,  but  Jack  would  not  let  it  go. 
The  Giant  started  up,  and  saw  Jack  with  the 
harp  running  down  the  road. 

"  Stop,  you  rascal !  "  he  shouted.  "  You 
stole  my  hen  and  my  money-bags.  Do  you 
steal  my  harp  ?  I  '11  catch  you,  and  I  '11  break 
every  bone  in  your  body  !  " 

"  Catch  me  if  you  can !  "  said  Jack.  He 
knew  he  could  run  faster  than  the  Giant.  Off 
they  went,  Jack  and  the  harp,  and  the  Giant 
after  them.  Jack  came  to  the  bean-stalk.  The 
harp  was  all  the  while  playing  music,  but  now 
Jack  said  :  — 


56  THE    WOLF  AND   THE   GOAT. 

"  Stop  !  "  and  the  harp  stopped  playing.  He 
hurried  down  the  bean-stalk  with  the  harp. 
There  sat  his  mother,  by  the  cottage,  weeping. 

"  Do  not  cry,  mother,"  he  said.  "  Quick, 
bring  me  a  hatchet !  Make  haste  !  "  He  knew 
there  was  not  a  minute  to  spare.  The  Giant 
was  already  coming  down.  He  was  half-way 
down  when  Jack  took  his  hatchet  and  cut  the 
bean-stalk  down,  close  to  its  roots.  Over  fell 
the  bean-stalk,  and  down  came  the  Giant  upon 
the  ground.  He  was  killed  on  the  spot. 

In  a  moment  the  fairy  was  seen.  She  told 
Jack's  mother  everything,  and  how  brave  he  had 
been.  And  that  was  the  end.  The  bean-stalk 
never  grew  again. 


THE  WOLF  AND  THE  GOAT. 

A  WOLF  saw  a  Goat  feeding  upon  the  edge  of 
a  steep  rock,  where  he  could  not  get  at  her. 

"  Come  down  lower,"  said  he  ;  "  the  grass  is 
much  richer  here  where  I  am." 

"  Thank  you,  good  sir,"  said  the  Goat ;  "  you 
are  not  inviting  me  to  feed  myself,  but  to  be 
food  for  you." 


THE  FARMER'S  SONS.  57 

THE   STAG  AND  THE   LION. 

A  THIRSTY  Stag  came  to  a  spring  to  drink ; 
as  he  drank,  he  looked  into  the  water  and  saw 
himself.  He  was  very  proud  of  his  horns,  when 
he  saw  how  big  they  were  and  what  branches 
they  had ;  but  he  looked  at  his  feet,  and  took  it 
hard  that  they  should  be  so  thin  and  weak. 

Now,  while  he  was  thinking  about  these 
things,  a  Lion  sprang  out  and  began  to  chase 
him.  The  Stag  turned  and  ran,  and  as  he  was 
very  fleet  he  outran  the  Lion  so  long  as  they 
were  on  the  open  plain  ;  but  when  they  came  to 
a  piece  of  woods,  the  Stag's  horns  became  caught 
in  the  branches  of  the  trees.  He  could  not  run, 
and  the  Lion  caught  up  with  him. 

As  the  Lion  fell  upon  him  with  his  claws,  the 
Stag  cried  out  :•  — 

"  What  a  wretch  am  I !  I  was  made  safe  by 
the  very  parts  I  scorned,  and  have  come  to  my 
end  by  the  parts  I  gloried  in  ! " 

THE  FARMER'S  SONS. 

A  FARMER'S  Sons  once  fell  out.  The  Farmer 
tried  to  make  peace  between  -them,  but  though 
he  used  many  words,  he  could  do  nothing. 
Then  he  bade  them  bring  him  some  sticks. 
These  he  tied  together  into  a  bundle,  and  gave 


58  THE    TWO  PACKS. 

the  bundle  in  turn  to  each  of  his  Sons,  and  told 
him  to  break  it.  Each  son  tried,  but  could  not. 
Then  he  untied  the  bundle  and  gave  them 
each  one  stick  to  break ;  this  they  did  easily, 
and  he  said  :  "  So  is  it  with  you,  my  Sons.  If 
you  are  all  of  the  same  mind,  your  enemies  can 
do  you  no  harm ;  but  if  you  quarrel,  they  will 
easily  get  the  better  of  you." 

THE  FOX  IN  THE  WELL. 

AN  unlucky  Fox  dropped  into  a  well,  and 
cried  out  for  help.  A  Wolf  overheard  him,  and 
looked  down  to  see  what  the  matter  was. 

"  Ah  !  "  says  the  Fox,  "  pray  lend  a  hand, 
friend,  and  get  me  out  of  this." 

"  Poor  creature,"  says  the  Wolf,  "  how  did 
this  come  about?  How  long  hast  thou  been 
here  ?  Thou  must  be  mighty  cold." 

"  Come,  come,"  says  the  Fox,  "  this  is  no  time 
for  pitying  and  asking  questions  ;  get  me  out 
of  the  well  first,  and  I  will  tell  you  all  about  it 
afterwards." 

THE  TWO  PACKS. 

EVERY  man  carries  two  Packs,  one  in  front, 
the  other  behind,  and  each  is  full  of  faults. 
But  the  one  in  front  holds  other  people's  faults, 
the  one  behind  holds  his  own.  And  so  it  is 
that  men  do  not  see  their  own  faults  at  all,  but 
see  very  clearly  the  faults  of  others. 


PUSS  IN  BOOTS.  59 

PUSS  IN  BOOTS. 

Li 
PUSS   GOES    A-HUNTING. 

THERE  was  once  an  old  miller,  and  when  he 
came  to  die  he  left  nothing  to  his  three  sons 
except  his  mill,  an  ass,  and  a  cat.  The  eldest 
son  took  the  mill.,  the  second  son  took  the  ass, 
and  so  the  cat  fell  to  the  youngest.  This  poor 
fellow  looked  very  sober,  and  said :  — 

"  What  am  I  to  do  ?  My  brothers  can  take 
care  of  themselves  with  a  mill  and  an  ass  ;  but 
I  can  only  eat  the  cat  and  sell  his  skin.  Then 
what  will  be  left?  I  shall  die  of  hunger." 
The  cat  heard  these  words  and  looked  up  at  his 
master. 

"  Do  not  be  troubled,"  he  said.  "  Only  give 
me  a  bag  and  get  me  a  pair  of  boots,  and  I  will 
soon  show  you  what  I  can  do." 

The  young  man  did  not  see  what  the  cat  could 
do,  but  he  knew  he  could  do  many  strange 
things.  He  had  seen  him  hang  stiff  by  his  hind 
legs  as  if  he  were  dead ;  he  had  seen  him  hide 
himself  in  the  meal  tub.  Oh !  the  cat  was  a 
wise  one  !  Besides,  what  else  was  there  for  the 
young  man  to  do  ? 

So  he  got  for  the  cat  a  bag  and  a  pair  of 


60  PUSS  IN  BOOTS. 

boots.  Puss  drew  on  the  boots  and  hung  the 
bag  about  his  neck.  Then  he  took  hold  of  the 
two  strings  of  the  bag  with  his  fore  paws  and 
set  off  for  a  place  where  there  were  some  rabbits. 

He  filled  his  bag  with  bran  and  left  the  mouth 
of  the  bag  open.  Then  he  lay  down,  shut  his 
eyes,  and  seemed  to  be  sound  asleep.  Soon  a 
young  rabbit  smelled  the  bran  and  saw  the  open 
bag.  He  went  headlong  into  it,  and  at  once  the 
cat  drew  the  strings  and  caught  the  rabbit. 

Puss  now  went  to  the  palace,  and  asked  to 
speak  to  the  king.  So  he  was  brought  before 
the  king,  and  he  made  a  low  bow  and  said  :  — 

"  Sire,  this  is  a  rabbit  which  my  master  bade 
me  bring  to  you." 

"  And  who  is  your  master  ?  " 

"  He  is  the  Marquis  of  Carabas,"  said  the  cat, 
bowing  low.  This  was  a  title  which  Puss  took 
it  into  his  head  to  give  to  his  master. 

"  Tell  your  master  that  I  accept  his  gift," 
said  the  king,  and  Puss  went  off  in  his  boots. 
In  a  few  days  he  hid  himself  with  his  bag  in  a 
cornfield.  This  time  he  caught  two  partridges, 
and  carried  them  as  before  to  the  king.  The 
king  sent  his  thanks  to  the  Marquis  of  Carabas, 
and  made  a  present  to  Puss. 

So  things  went  on  for  some  time.  Every 
week  Puss  brought  some  game  to  the  king,  and 
the  king  began  to  think  the  Marquis  of  Carabas 


PUSS  IN  BOOTS.  61 

a  famous  hunter.  Now  it  chanced  that  the 
king  and  his  daughter  were  about  to  take  a 
drive  along  the  banks  of  a  river.  Puss  heard  of 
it  and  went  to  his  master. 

"  Master,"  said  he,  "  do  just  as  I  tell  you,  and 
your  fortune  will  be  made.  You  need  only  go 
and  bathe  in  the  river  at  a  spot  I  shall  point 
out,  and  leave  the  rest  to  me." 

"  Very  well,"  said  his  master  He  did  as  the 
cat  told  him,  but  he  did  not  know  what  it  all 
meant.  While  he  was  in  the  river,  the  king 
and  the  princess  drove  by.  Puss  jumped  out  of 
the  bushes  and  began  to  bawl :  — 

"  Help  !  help !  the  Marquis  of  Carabas  is 
drowning  !  save  him  !  "  The  king  heard  and 
looked  out  of  his  carriage.  There  he  saw  the 
cat  that  had  brought  him  so  much  game,  and  he 
bade  his  men  run  to  help  the  Marquis.  When 
he  was  out  of  the  river,  Puss  came  forward,  and 
told  what  had  happened. 

"  My  master  was  bathing  and  some  robbers 
came  and  stole  his  clothes.  I  ran  after  them 
and  cried  '  Stop  thief ! '  but  they  got  away. 
Then  my  master  was  carried  beyond  his  depth, 
and  would  have  drowned,  if  you  had  not  come 
by  with  your  men." 

At  this  the  king  bade  one  of  his  servants  ride 
back  and  bring  a  fine  suit  of  clothes  for  the 
Marquis,  and  they  all  waited.  So,  at  last,  the 


62  PUSS  IN  BOOTS. 

Marquis  of  Carabas  came  up  to  the  carriage, 
dressed  much  more  finely  than  he  ever  had  been 
in  his  life.  He  was  a  handsome  fellow,  and  he 
looked  so  well  that  the  king  at  once  bade  him 
enter  the  carriage. 


n. 

PUSS   AND   THE    LION. 

Puss  now  had  things  quite  to  his  mind.  He 
ran  on  before  and  came  to  a  meadow,  where 
some  men  were  mowing  grass.  He  stopped  be- 
fore them,  and  said :  — 

"  I  say,  good  folks,  the  king  is  coming  this 
way.  You  must  tell  him  that  this  field  belongs 
to  the  Marquis  of  Carabas,  or  you  shall  ah1  be 
chopped  as  fine  as  mince-meat."  When  the 
carriage  came  by,  the  king  put  his  head  out,  and 
said  to  the  men :  — 

"  This  is  good  grass  land.     Who  owns  it  ?  " 

"  The  Marquis  of  Carabas,"  they  all  said,  for 
Puss  had  thrown  them  into  a  great  fright. 

"  You  have  a  fine  estate,  Marquis,"  said  the 
king. 

"  Yes,  Sire,"  he  replied,  tossing  his  head ;  "  it 
pays  me  well."  Puss  still  ran  before  the  car- 
riage and  came  soon  to  some  reapers. 

"  I  say,"  he  cried,  "  mind  you  tell  the  king 


PUSS  IN  BOOTS.  63 

that  all  this  grain  belongs  to  the  Marquis  of 
Carabas,  or  you  shall  all  be  chopped  as  fine  as 
mince-meat."  The  king  now  came  by  and  asked 
the  reapers  who  owned  the  grain  they  were  cut- 
ting. 

"  The  Marquis  of  Carabas,"  they  said.  So  it 
went  on.  Puss  bade  the  men  in  the  fields  call 
the  Marquis  of  Carabas  their  lord,  or  it  would 
go  hard  with  them.  The  king  was  amazed. 
The  Marquis  toek  it  all  with  a  grand  air,  and 
it  was  easy  to  see  that  he  was  a  very  rich  and 
great  man  indeed.  The  princess  sat  in  the  cor- 
ner of  the  carriage,  and  thought  the  Marquis 
no  mean  fellow. 

At  last  they  drew  near  the  castle  of  the  one 
who  really  owned  all  the  fields  they  had  passed 
through.  Puss  asked  about  him  and  found  he 
was  a  monster  who  made  every  one  about  him 
very  much  afraid.  Puss  sent  in  word  that  he 
should  like  to  pay  his  respects,  and  the  monster 
bade  him  come  in. 

"  I  have  been  told,"  said  Puss,  "  that  you  can 
change  yourself  into  any  kind  of  animal.  They 
say  you  can  even  make  yourself  a  lion." 

"  To  be  sure  I  can,"  said  the  monster,  sharply. 
"  Do  you  not  believe  it  ?  Look,  and  you  shall 
see  me  become  a  lion  at  once."  When  Puss  saw 
a  lion  before  him,  he  was  thrown  into  a  great 
fright,  and  got  as  far  away  as  he  could.  There 
he  stayed  till  the  lion  became  a  monster  again. 


64  PUSS  IN  BOOTS. 

"That  was  dreadful!"  said  Puss.  "I  was 
nearly  dead  with  fear.  But  it  must  be  much 
harder  to  make  yourself  small.  They  do  say 
that  you  can  turn  into  a  mouse,  but  I  do  not 
believe  it." 

"  Not  believe  it ! "  cried  the  monster.  «  You 
shall  see  !  "  So  he  made  himself  at  once  into  a 
mouse,  and  began  running  over  the  floor.  In  a 
twinkling  Puss  pounced  upon  him  and  gave  him 
one  shake.  That  was  the  end  of  the  monster. 

By  this  time  the  king  had  reached  the  gates 
of  the  castle,  and  thought  he  would  like  to  see 
so  fine  a  place.  Puss  heard  the  wheels  and  ran 
down  just  as  the  king  drove  up  to  the  door. 

"  Welcome ! "  he  said,  as  he  stood  on  the  steps 
of  the  castle.  "Welcome  to  the  castle  of  the 
Marquis  of  Carabas  !  " 

"  What !  my  lord  Marquis,"  said  the  king, 
"  does  this  castle,  too,  belong  to  you  ?  I  never 
saw  anything  so  fine.  I  should  really  like  to 
enter." 

"  Your  majesty  is  welcome  !  "  said  the  young 
man,  bowing  low,  taking  off  the  cap  which  the 
king  had  given  him.  Then  he  gave  his  hand  to 
the  princess,  and  they  went  up  the  steps.  Puss 
danced  before  them  in  his  boots. 

They  came  into  a  great  hall,  and  there  they 
found  a  feast  spread.  The  monster  had  asked 
some  friends  to  dine  with  him  that  day,  but  the 


THE  FARMER  AND    THE  STORK.  65 

news  went  about  that  the  king  was  at  the  castle, 
and  so  they  dared  not  go. 

The  king  was  amazed  at  all  he  saw,  and  the 
princess  went  behind  him,  just  as  much  pleased. 
The  Marquis  of  Carabas  said  little.  He  held  his 
nead  high  and  played  with  his  sword. 

When  dinner  was  over,  the  king  took  the 
marquis  one  side,  and  said :  — 

"  You  have  only  to  say  the  word,  my  lord 
Marquis,  and  you  shall  be  the  son-in-law  of  your 
king." 

So  the  marquis  married  the  princess,  and  Puss 
in  Boots  became  a  great  lord,  and  hunted  mice 
for  mere  sport,  just  when  he  pleased. 


THE  FARMER  AND  THE  STORK. 

A  FARMER  set  a  net  in  his  field  to  catch  the 
Cranes  that  were  eating  his  grain.  He  caught 
the  Cranes,  and  with  them  a  Stork  also.  The 
Stork  was  lame,  and  begged  the  Farmer  to  let 
him  go. 

"  I  am  not  a  Crane,"  he  said.  "  I  am  a  Stork. 
I  am  a  very  good  bird,  and  take  care  of  my 
father  and  mother.  Look  at  the  color  of  my 
skin  ;  it  is  not  the  same  as  the  Crane's." 

But  the  Farmer  said  :  "  I  do  not  know  how 
that  is.  I  caught  you  with  the  Cranes,  and 
with  the  Cranes  you  must  die." 


66       THE  GOOSE  THAT  LAID  GOLDEN  EGGS. 

It  is  well  to  keep  out  of  the  way  of  wicked 
people,  lest  we  fall  into  the  trap  with  them. 


THE  FOX  AND  THE  GRAPES. 

A  Fox,  who  was  hungry,  found  some  bunches 
of  grapes  upon  a  vine  high  up  a  tree.  He 
longed  to  get  at  them,  but  could  not.  So  he 
left  them  hanging  there  and  went  off,  saying  to 
himself :  — 

"  They  are  sour  grapes." 

That  is  what  people  sometimes  do  when  they 
cannot  get  what  they  want ;  they  make  believe 
that  what  they  want  is  good  for  nothing. 


THE  GOOSE  THAT  LAID  GOLDEN  EGGS. 

THERE  was  a  man  who  once  had  a  Goose 
that  always  laid  golden  eggs,  one  every  day  in 
the  year. 

Now,  he  thought  there  must  be  gold  inside  of 
her ;  so  he  wrung  her  neck  and  laid  her  open, 
and  found  that  she  was  exactly  like  all  other 
geese.  He  thought  to  find  riches,  and  lost  the 
little  he  had. 

This  fable  teaches  that  one  should  be  content 
with  what  he  has,  and  not  be  greedy. 


THE  MAN  AND  THE  LION.  67 

THE  DOG  AND  HIS  IMAGE. 

A  DOG,  with  a  bit  of  meat  in  his  mouth,  was 
crossing  a  river.  Looking  down  he  saw  his 
image  in  the  water,  and  thought  it  was  another 
dog,  with  a  bigger  piece.  So  he  dropped  what 
he  had,  and  jumped  into  the  water  after  the 
other  piece.  Thus  he  lost  both  pieces :  the  one 
he  really  had,  which  he  dropped ;  and  the  one 
he  wanted,  which  was  no  piece  at  all. 

This  is  a  good  fable  for  greedy  people. 

THE  MAN  AND  THE  LION. 

A  LION  was  once  going  along  the  road  with  a 
Man,  and  each  was  telling  large  stories.  By 
and  by  they  came  upon  the  statue,  by  the  road- 
side, of  a  man  with  his  hand  upon  a  lion's  throat. 
The  Man  pointed  to  it,  and  said  :  — 

"  There  !  see  how  much  stronger  we  are  than 
you  !  We  are  the  masters  of  animals." 

But  the  Lion  said  quickly :  — 

"  That  is  the  way  these  things  are  done  by 
you,  but  if  lions  knew  how  to  carve  in  stone, 
you  would  see  the  lion  there  with  his  paw  on 
the  man's  neck." 


TOM  THUMB. 

I. 
TOM   IS   SOLD   FOR   A   BARGAIN. 

A  POOR  woodman  once  sat  by  the  fire  in  his 
cottage,  and  his  wife  sat  by  his  side,  spinning. 

"  How  lonely  it  is,"  said  he, "  for  you  and  me 
to  sit  here  by  ourselves  without  any  children  to 
play  about  and  amuse  us." 

"  What  you  say  is  very  true,"  said  his  wife,  as 
she  turned  her  wheel.  "  How  happy  should  I  be, 
if  I  had  but  one  child.  If  it  were  ever  so  small, 
if  it  were  no  bigger  than  my  thumb,  I  should  be 
very  happy  and  love  it  dearly." 

Now  it  came  to  pass  that  the  good  woman  had 
her  wish,  for  some  time  afterward  she  had  a  lit- 
tle boy  who  was  healthy  and  strong,  but  not 
much  bigger  than  her  thumb.  So  they  said  :  — 

"  Well,  we  cannot  say  we  have  not  got  what 
we  wished  for,  and,  little  as  he  is,  we  will  love 
him  dearly  !  "  and  they  called  him  Tom  Thumb. 
They  gave  him  plenty  to  eat,  yet  he  never  grew 
bigger,  but  remained  just  the  same  size  as  when 
he  was  born ;  still  his  eyes  were  sharp  and  spark* 
ling,  and  he  soon  showed  himself  to  be  a  bright 
little  fellow,  who  always  knew  what  he  was 
about 


TOM  THUMB.  69 

One  day  the  woodman  was  getting  ready  to 
go  into  the  wood  to  cut  fuel,  and  he  said  :  — 

"  I  wish  I  had  some  one  to  bring  the  cart  af- 
ter me,  for  I  want  to  make  haste." 

"  0  father,"  cried  Tom,  "  I  will  take  care  of 
that ;  the  cart  shall  be  in  the  wood  by  the  time 
you  want  it."  The  woodman  laughed  and 
said :  — 

"  How  can  that  be  ?  You  cannot  reach  up 
to  the  horse's  bridle." 

"  Never  mind  that,  father.  If  my  mother  will 
only  harness  the  horse,  I  will  get  into  his  ear, 
and  tell  him  which  way  to  go." 

"  Well,"  said  the  father,  « we  will  try  for 
once." 

When  the  time  came,  the  mother  harnessed 
the  horse  to  the  cart,  and  put  Tom  into  his  ear. 
There  the  little  man  sat  and  told  the  beast  how 
to  go,  crying  out,  "  Go  on,"  and  "  Stop,"  as  he 
wanted.  So  the  horse  went  on  just  as  if  the 
woodman  were  driving  it  himself. 

It  happened  that  the  horse  fell  to  trotting  too 
fast,  and  Tom  called  out,  "  Gently,  gently." 
Just  then  two  strangers  came  up. 

"  How  odd  it  is,"  one  of  them  said.  "  There 
is  a  cart  going  along,  and  I  hear  a  carter  talking 
to  the  horse,  but  I  see  no  one." 

"  That  is  strange,"  said  the  other.  "  Let  us 
follow  the  cart  and  see  where  it  goes."  They 


70  TOM  THUMB. 

went  on  into  the  wood,  and  came  at  last  to  the 
place  where  the  woodman  was.  The  cart  drove 
up  and  Tom  said  :  — 

"  See,  father,  here  I  am  with  the  cart,  safe 
and  sound.  Now,  take  me  down." 

So  his  father  took  hold  of  the  horse  with  one 
hand,  and  lifted  his  son  down  with  the  other. 
He  put  him  on  a  little  stick,  where  he  was  as 
merry  as  you  please.  The  two  strangers  looked 
on  and  saw  it  all,  and  did  not  know  what  to  say 
for  wonder.  At  last  one  took  the  other  aside 
and  said :  — 

"  That  little  chap  will  make  our  fortune  if  we 
can  get  him,  and  carry  him  about  from  town  to 
town  as  a  show.  We  must  buy  him."  Then 
they  went  to  the  woodman  and  asked  him  what 
he  would  take  for  the  little  man.  "  He  will  be 
better  off  with  us  than  with  you,"  they  said. 

"  I  '11  not  sell  him  at  all,"  said  the  father. 
"  My  own  flesh  and  blood  is  dearer  to  me  than 
all  the  silver  and  gold  in  the  world." 

But  Tom  heard  what  was  said,  and  crept  up 
his  father's  coat  to  his  shoulder,  and  spoke  in 
his  ear :  — 

"  Take  the  money,  father,  and  let  them  have 
me.  I  '11  soon  come  back  to  you."  So  the 
woodman  at  last  agreed  to  sell  Tom  Thumb  to 
the  strangers  for  a  large  piece  of  gold. 

"  Where  do  you  like  to  sit  ?  "  one  of  them 
asked  Tom. 


TOM   THUMB.  71 

"  Oh,  put  me  on  the  rim  of  your  hat ;  that 
will  be  a  nice  place  for  me.  I  can  walk  about 
there  and  see  the  country  as  we  go  along." 

They  did  as  he  wished.  Tom  took  leave  of 
his  father,  and  went  off  with  the  two  strangers. 
They  kept  on  their  way  till  it  began  to  grow 
dark.  Then  Tom  said  :  — 

"  Let  me  get  down,  I  am  tired."  So  the  man 
took  off  his  hat,  and  set  him  down  on  a  lump  of 
earth  in  a  ploughed  field,  by  the  side  of  the  road. 
But  Tom  ran  about  among  the  furrows,  and  at 
last  slipped  into  an  old  mouse-hole. 

"Good -night,  masters.  I'm  off,"  said  he. 
"Look  sharp  after  me  next  time."  They  ran 
to  the  place  and  poked  the  ends  of  their  sticks 
into  the  mouse -hole,  but  all  in  vain.  Tom 
crawled  farther  in.  They  could  not  get  him,  and 
as  it  was  now  quite  dark  they  went  away  very 
cross.  ( 

II. 

HOW     TOM     FRIGHTENED     THE     THIEVES. 

WHEN  Tom  found  they  were  gone,  he  crept 
out  of  his  hiding-place. 

"  How  dangerous  it  is,"  said  he,  "  to  walk 
about  in  this  ploughed  field.  If  I  were  to  fall 
from  one  of  those  big  lumps  I  should  surely 
break  my  neck."  At  last,  by  good  luck,  he 
found  a  large,  empty  snail-shell. 


72  TOM  THUMB. 

"  This  is  lucky,"  said  he.  "  I  can  sleep  here 
very  well,"  and  in  he  crept.  Just  as  he  was 
falling  asleep  he  heard  two  men  pass  by,  and  one 
said  to  the  other :  — 

"How  shall  we  manage  to  steal  that  rich 
farmer's  silver  and  gold?" 

"I'll  tell  you!  "cried  Tom. 

"  What  noise  was  that  ?  I  am  sure  I  heard 
some  one  speak,"  said  the  thief.  He  was  in  a 
great  fright.  They  both  stood  listening,  and 
Tom  spoke  up :  — 

"  Take  me  with  you,  and  I  will  soon  show  you 
how  to  get  the  farmer's  money." 

"  But  where  are  you  ?  " 

"  Look  about  on  the  ground,  and  listen  where 
the  sound  comes  from." 

"  What  a  little  chap !  What  can  you  do  for 
us?" 

"Why,  I  can  get  between  the  iron  window 
bars,  and  throw  you  out  whatever  you  want." 

"  That  is  a  good  thought.  Come  along ;  we 
will  see  what  you  can  do." 

When  they  came  to  the  farmer's  house,  Tom 
slipped  through  the  bars  into  the  room,  and  then 
called  out  as  loud  as  he  could  :  — 

"  Will  you  have  all  that  is  here? " 

"  Softly,  softly ! "  said  the  thieves.  "  Speak 
low,  or  you  will  wake  somebody." 

Tom  made  as  if  he  did  not  understand  them, 
and  bawled  out  again  :  — 


TOM  THUMB.  73 

"  How  much  will  you  have  ?  Shall  I  throw 
it  all  out?" 

Now  the  cook  lay  in  the  next  room,  and 
hearing  a  noise,  she  raised  herself  in  her  bed 
and  listened.  But  the  thieves  had  been  thrown 
into  a  fright  and  had  run  away.  By  and  by 
they  plucked  up  courage,  and  said :  — 

"  That  little  fellow  is  only  trying  to  make 
fools  of  us."  So  they  came  back  and  spoke  low 
to  him,  saying :  "  Now  let  us  have  no  more  of 
your  jokes,  but  throw  out  some  of  the  money." 
Then  Tom  called  out  again  as  loud  as  he 
could :  — 

"  Very  weU !  Hold  your  hands ;  here  it 
comes." 

The  cook  heard  this  plainly ;  she  sprang  out 
of  bed,  and  ran  to  open  the  door.  The  thieves 
were  off  as  if  a  wolf  were  after  them,  and  the 
cook  could  see  nothing  in  the  dark.  So  she 
went  back  for  a  light,  and  while  she  was  gone, 
Tom  slipped  off  into  the  barn. 

The  cook  looked  about  and  searched  every 
hole  and  corner,  but  found  nobody;  she  went 
back  to  bed,  and  thought  she  must  have  been 
dreaming  with  her  eyes  open.  Tom  crawled 
about  in  the  hayloft,  and  at  last  found  a  good 
place  to  rest  in.  He  meant  to  sleep  till  day- 
light, and  then  find  his  way  home  to  his  father 
and  mother. 


74  TOM  THUMB. 

m. 

INSIDE     A     COW. 

POOR  Tom  Thumb!  his  troubles  were  onh 
begun.  The  cook  got  up  early  to  feed  the  cows. 
She  went  straight  to  the  hayloft,  and  carried 
away  a  large  bundle  of  hay,  with  the  little  man 
in  the  middle  of  it  fast  asleep.  He  slept  on  and 
did  not  wake  till  he  found  himself  in  the  mouth 
of  a  cow.  She  had  taken  him  up  with  a  mouth- 
ful of  hay. 

"  Dear  me,"  said  he,  "  how  did  I  manage  to 
tumble  into  the  mill  ?  "  But  he  soon  found  out 
where  he  really  was,  and  he  had  to  keep  all  his 
wits  about  him,  or  he  would  have  fallen  between 
the  cow's  teeth,  and  then  he  would  have  been 
crushed  to  death.  At  last  he  went  down  into 
her  stomach. 

"  It  is  rather  dark  here,"  said  he ;  "  they  for- 
got to  build  windows  in  this  room  to  let  the  sun 
in ;  a  candle  would  be  no  bad  thing."  Thus  he 
made  the  best  of  his  bad  luck,  but  he  did  not 
like  his  resting  place  at  all.  The  worst  of  it  was, 
that  more  and  more  hay  was  always  coming 
down,  and  there  was  less  and  less  room  to  turn 
round  in.  At  last  he  cried  out  as  loud  as  he 
could :  — 

"  Don't  bring  me  any  more  hay  !  don't  bring 


TOM  THUMB.  75 

me  any  more  hay !  "  The  cook  happened  just 
then  to  be  milking  the  cow.  She  heard  some 
one  speak,  but  she  saw  nobody.  Yet  she  was 
sure  it  was  the  same  voice  she  had  heard  in  the 
night.  It  put  her  into  such  a  fright  that  she 
fell  off  her  stool  and  upset  her  milk-pail.  She 
ran  off  as  fast  as  she  could  to  the  farmer,  and 
said :  — 

"  Sir,  sir,  the  cow  is  talking."  But  the 
farmer  said :  — 

"  Woman,  thou  art  surely  mad."  Still,  he 
went  with  her  into  the  cow-house,  to  see  what 
was  the  matter.  Just  as  they  went  in,  Tom 
cried  out  again  :  — 

"  Don't  bring  me  any  more  hay  !  don't  bring 
me  any  more  hay  !  "  Then  the  farmer  was  in  a 
fright.  He  was  sure  the  cow  must  be  mad,  so 
he  gave  orders  to  have  her  killed  at  once.  The 
cow  was  killed,  and  the  stomach  with  Tom  in  it 
was  thrown  into  the  barnyard. 

IV. 

SAFE    AT    HOME    AGAIN. 

TOM  soon  set  himself  to  work  to  get  out,  and 
that  was  not  a  very  easy  task.  But  at  last,  just 
as  he  made  room  to  get  his  head  out,  a  new  ill 
befell  him.  A  hungry  wolf  was  prowling  about, 


76  TOM  THUMB. 

and  at  that  moment  seized  the  stomach  with 
Tom  in  it,  and  swallowed  it.  Off  he  ran,  but 
Tom  was  not  cast  down.  He  began  to  chat 
with  the  wolf,  and  caUed  out :  — 

"  My  good  friend,  I  can  show  you  a  famous 
treat." 

"Where  is  that?" 

"  In  the  house  near  the  wood.  You  can 
crawl  through  the  drain  into  the  kitchen,  and 
there  you  will  find  cakes,  ham,  beef,  and  every- 
thing that  is  nice."  Now,  this  was  the  house 
where  Tom  Thumb  lived.  The  wolf  did  not 
need  to  be  asked  twice.  That  very  night  he 
went  to  the  house  and  crawled  through  the  drain 
into  the  kitchen,  and  there  he  ate  and  drank  to 
his  heart's  content. 

After  a  while  he  had  eaten  so  much  that  he 
was  ready  to  go  away.  But  now  he  could  not 
squeeze  through  the  drain.  This  was  just  what 
Tom  had  thought  of,  and  the  little  chap  set  up 
a  great  shout. 

"  Will  you  be  quiet  ?  "  said  the  wolf.  "  You 
will  wake  everybody  in  the  house." 

"  What  is  that  to  me  ?  "  said  the  little  man, 
"  You  have  had  your  frolic ;  now  1  have  a  mind 
to  be  merry  myself ;  "  and  he  began  again  to 
sing  and  shout  as  loud  as  he  could. 

The  woodman  and  his  wife  were  awakened  by 
the  noise,  and  peeped  through  a  crack  into  the 


TOM  THUMB.  77 

kitchen.  When  they  saw  a  wolf  there,  you 
may  be  sure  they  were  in  a  great  fright.  The 
woodman  ran  for  his  axe,  and  gave  his  wife  a 
scythe. 

"  Now,  do  you  stay  behind,"  said  the  wood- 
man. "  When  I  have  knocked  the  wolf  on  the 
head,  you  run  at  him  with  the  scythe."  Tom 
heard  all  this,  and  said :  — 

"  Father  !  father  !  I  am  here.  The  wolf  has 
swallowed  me." 

"  Now,  Heaven  be  praised  !  "  said  the  wood- 
man. "  We  have  found  our  dear  child  again. 
Do  not  use  the  scythe,  wife,  for  you  may  hurt 
him."  Then  he  aimed  a  great  blow,  and  struck 
the  wolf  on  the  head,  and  killed  him  at  once. 
They  opened  him,  and  set  Tom  Thumb  free. 

"  Ah  !  "  said  his  father,  "  what  fears  we  have 
had  for  you  ! " 

"  Yes,  father,"  he  answered.  "  I  have  trav- 
eled all  over  the  world  since  we  parted,  and  now 
I  am  very  glad  to  get  fresh  air  again." 

"  Why,  where  have  you  been  ?  " 

"  I  have  been  in  a  mouse-hole,  in  a  snail-shell, 
down  a  cow's  throat,  and  inside  the  wolf,  and 
yet  here  I  am  again,  safe  and  sound." 

"  Well,  well,"  said  his  father.  "  We  will  not 
sell  you  again  for  all  the  riches  in  the  world." 

So  they  hugged  and  kissed  their  dear  little 
son,  and  gave  him  plenty  to  eat  and  drink,  and 


78  THE  FROG  AND   THE   OX. 

bought  him  new  clothes,  for  his  old  ones  had 
been  quite  spoiled  on  his  journey. 


BELLING  THE  CAT. 

'  THERE  was  a  sly  Cat  in  a  house,  and  the 
Mice  were  so  plagued  with  her  at  every  turn, 
that  they  called  a  council  to  advise  some  way  by 
which  they  might  guard  against  being  caught 
by  her. 

"  If  you  will  be  ruled  by  me,"  says  one  of  the 
Mice,  "  there 's  nothing  like  hanging  a  bell 
about  the  Cat's  neck,  to  give  warning  before- 
hand when  Puss  is  coming."  They  all  thought 
that  a  capital  plan. 

"  Well,"  says  another,  "  and  now  we  are 
agreed  upon  the  bell,  say,  who  shall  hang  it 
upon  the  Cat's  neck  ?  "  But  there  was  no  one 
ready  to  bell  the  Cat. 


THE  FROG  AND  THE  OX. 

AN  Ox,  grazing  in  a  swampy  meadow,  chanced 
to  set  his  foot  among  a  number  of  young  Frogs, 
and  crushed  nearly  all  to  death.  One  that  es- 
caped ran  off  to  his  mother  with  the  dreadful 
news. 

"  Oh,  mother,"  said  he,  "  it  was  a  beast,  such 
a  big,  four-footed  beast,  that  did  it !  " 


THE  MILLER,  HIS  SON,  AND   THEIR  ASS.     79 

"Big?"  said  the  old   Frog.     "How  big? 
Was  it  as  big  "  —  and  she  puffed  herself  out  — 
"as  big  as  this?" 

"  Oh,  a  great  deal  bigger  than  that." 

"  Well,  was  it  so  big  ?  "  and  she  swelled  her- 
self out  yet  more. 

"  Indeed,  mother,  but  it  was  ;  and  if  you  were 
to  burst  yourself  you  would  never  reach  half  its 
size."  The  old  Frog  made  one  more  trial,  de- 
termined to  be  as  big  as  the  Ox,  and  burst  her- 
self indeed. 


THE  MILLER,  HIS  SON,   AND  THEIR  ASS. 

A  MILLER  and  his  Son  were  driving  their  Ass 
to  the  fair  to  sell  him.  They  had  not  gone  far, 
when  they  met  a  troop  of  girls,  returning  from 
the  town,  talking  and  laughing. 

"Look  there!"  cried  one  of  them.  "Did 
you  ever  see  such  fools,  to  be  trudging  along 
on  foot,  when  they  might  be  riding?"  The  Mil- 
ler, when  he  heard  this,  bade  his  Son  get  up  on 
the  Ass,  and  walked  along  merrily  by  his  side. 
Soon  they  came  to  a  group  of  old  men  talking 
gravely. 

"  There !  "  said  one  of  them ;  "  that  proves 
what  I  was  saying.  What  respect  is  shown  to 
old  age  in  these  days?  Do  you  see  that  idle 
young  rogue  riding,  while  his  father  has  to 


80     THE  MILLER,  HIS  SON,   AND   THEIR  ASS. 

walk  ?  Get  down,  you  scapegrace,  and  let  the 
old  man  get  on  ! " 

Upon  this  the  Son  got  down  from  the  Ass, 
and  the  Miller  took  his  place.  They  had  not 
gone  far  when  they  met  a  company  of  women 
and  children. 

"Why,  you  lazy  old  fellow!"  cried  several 
tongues  at  once.  "  How  can  you  ride  upon  the 
beast,  when  that  poor  little  lad,  there,  can  hardly 
keep  pace  by  the  side  of  you  ?  " 

So  the  good-natured  Miller  took  his  Son  up 
behind  him.  They  had  now  almost  reached  the 
town. 

"  Pray,  honest  friend,"  said  a  townsman,  "  is 
that  Ass  your  own  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  said  the  MiUer. 

"  I  should  not  have  thought  so,"  said  the 
other,  "  by  the  way  you  load  him.  Why,  you 
two  are  better  able  to  carry  the  poor  beast  than 
he  to  carry  you." 

"Anything  to  please  you,"  said  the  Miller. 
"We  can  but  try."  So  he  and  his  Son  got 
down  from  the  Ass;  then  they  tied  his  legs 
together,  and,  taking  a  stout  pole,  tried  to  carry 
him  on  their  shoulders  over  a  bridge  that  led  to 
the  town. 

This  was  so  odd  a  sight  that  crowds  of  people 
ran  out  to  see  it,  and  to  laugh  at  it.  The  Ass, 
not  liking  to  be  tied,  kicked  the  cords  away,  and 


THE  ARAB  AND  HIS   CAMEL.  81 

tumbled  off  the  pole  into  the  water.  At  this 
the  Miller  and  his  Son  hung  down  their  heads, 
and  made  their  way  home  again,  having  learned 
that  by  trying  to  please  everybody,  they  had 
pleased  nobody,  and  lost  the  Ass  into  the  bargain. 


THE  WOLF  IN  SHEEP'S  CLOTHING. 

A  WOLF  once  clad  himself  in  the  skin  of  a 
Sheep,  and  so  got  in  among  the  flock,  where  he 
made  way  with  a  good  many  of  them.  At  last 
the  Shepherd  found  him  out,  and  hanged  him 
upon  a  tree,  as  a  warning  to  other  wolves. 

Some  Shepherds  going  by  saw  the  Wolf 
hanging,  and  thought  it  was  a  Sheep,  and  won- 
dered why  the  Shepherd  should  hang  a  Sheep. 
So  they  asked  him,  and  he  answered :  "  I  hang 
a  Wolf  when  I  catch  him,  even  though  he  be 
dressed  in  a  Sheep's  clothes." 

THE  ARAB  AND  HIS  CAMEL. 

ONE  cold  night,  as  an  Arab  sat  in  his  tent,  a 
Camel  gently  thrust  the  flap  of  the  tent  aside, 
and  looked  in. 

"  I  pray  thee,  master,"  he  said,  "  let  me  but 
put  my  head  within  the  tent,  for  it  is  cold 
without." 

"  By  all  means,  and  welcome,"  said  the  Arab 


82  THE  ARAB  AND  HIS   CAMEL. 

cheerfully;  and  the  Camel,  moving  forward, 
stretched  his  head  into  the  tent. 

"  If  I  might  but  warm  my  neck,  also,"  he  said, 
presently. 

"  Put  also  your  neck  inside,"  said  the  Arab. 
Soon  the  Camel,  who  had  been  turning  his  head 
from  side  to  side,  said  again  :  — 

"  It  will  take  but  little  more  room  if  I  place 
my  fore  legs  within  the  tent.  It  is  difficult 
standing  without." 

"  You  may  also  plant  your  fore  legs  within," 
said  the  Arab,  moving  a  little  to  make  room,  for 
the  tent  was  very  small. 

"  May  I  not  stand  wholly  within  ?  "  asked  the 
Camel,  finally.  "I  keep  the  tent  open  by 
standing  as  I  do." 

"Yes,  yes,"  said  the  Arab.  "I  will  have 
pity  on  you  as  well  as  on  myself.  Come  wholly 
inside." 

So  the  Camel  came  forward  and  crowded  into 
the  tent.  But  the  tent  was  too  small  for  both. 

"  I  think,"  said  the  Camel,  "  that  there  is  not 
room  for  both  of  us  here.  It  will  be  best  for  you 
to  stand  outside,  as  you  are  the  smaller ;  there 
will  then  be  room  enough  for  me." 

And  with  that  he  pushed  the  Arab  a  little, 
who  made  haste  to  get  outside  of  the  tent. 

It  is  a  wise  rule  to  resist  the  beginnings  of 
evil. 


THE   TORTOISE  AND  THE  HARE.  83 

THE  FISHERMAN  AND  THE  SPRAT. 

A  FISHERMAN  cast  his  net,  and  caught  a  Sprat. 
The  Sprat  begged  him  to  let  him  go  this  time, 
for  he  was  small  now,  but  by  and  by  he  would 
grow  to  be  a  big  fish,  and  be  worth  catching. 
But  the  Fisherman  said  :  — 

"  How  foolish  it  would  be  for  me  to  let  go 
what  I  have  now,  because  I  might,  perhaps,  get 
something  better  by  and  by  !  " 

This  fable  teaches  that  a  bird  in  the  hand  is 
worth  two  in  the  bush. 


THE  TORTOISE  AND  THE  HARE. 

A  HARE  once  made  fun  of  a  Tortoise. 

"  What  a  slow  way  you  have ! "  he  said  ; 
"  how  you  creep  along  !  " 

"Do  I?"  said  the  Tortoise.  "Try  a  race 
with  me,  and  I  will  beat  you." 

"  You  only  say  that  for  fun,"  said  the  Hare. 
"  But  come !  I  will  race  with  you.  Who  will 
mark  off  the  bounds  and  give  the  prize  ?  " 

"  Let  us  ask  the  Fox,"  said  the  Tortoise. 

The  Fox  was  very  wise  and  fair  ;  so  he  showed 
them  where  they  were  to  start,  and  how  far  they 
were  to  run. 

The  Tortoise  lost  no  time.  She  started  at 
once,  and  jogged  straight  on. 


84       COUNTRY  MOUSE  AND   TOWN  MOUSE. 

The  Hare  knew  he  could  come  to  the  end  in 
two  or  three  jumps ;  so  he  lay  down  and  took  a 
nap  first.  By  and  by  he  awoke,  and  then  ran 
fast ;  but  when  he  came  to  the  end,  the  Tortoise 
was  already  there ! 

Slow  and  steady  wins  the  race. 


THE  REEDS  AND  THE  OAK. 

THE  fierce  Wind  tore  up  an  Oak  by  its  roots, 
and  cast  it  into  the  stream.  As  the  Oak  floated 
on  the  water,  it  asked  the  Reeds  :  — 

"  How  is  it  that  you,  who  are  weak  and  slen- 
der, are  not  torn  up  by  the  roots  by  this  fierce 
Wind  ?  "  And  they  answered :  — 

"  You  fight  with  the  Wind  and  struggle 
against  it,  and  so  you  are  rooted  up  ;  but  we 
bow  before  every  Wind,  and  so  remain  un- 
harmed." 


THE  COUNTRY  MOUSE  AND  THE  TOWN 
MOUSE. 

A  COUNTRY  Mouse  had  a  friend  who  lived  in 
a  house  in  town.  Now  the  Town  Mouse  was 
invited  by  the  Country  Mouse  to  take  dinner 
with  him,  and  out  he  went,  and  sat  down  to  a 
dinner  of  barley  and  wheat. 

"  Do  you  know,  my  friend,"  said  he,  "  that 


COUNTRY  MOUSE  AND   TOWN  MOUSE.      85 

you  live  a  mere  ant's  life  out  here?  Now,  I 
have  plenty  at  home ;  come  and  enjoy  the  good 
things  there  with  me." 

So  the  two  set  off  for  town,  and  there  the 
Town  Mouse  showed  the  other  his  beans  and 
meal,  his  dates,  his  cheese  and  fruit  and  honey. 

As  the  Country  Mouse  ate,  drank,  and  was 
merry,  he  praised  his  friend  and  bewailed  his 
own  poor  lot. 

But  while  they  were  urging  each  other  to  eat 
heartily,  a  man  suddenly  opened  the  door,  and, 
frightened  by  the  noise,  they  crept  into  a  crack. 
By  and  by,  when  he  had  gone,  they  came  out 
and  tasted  of  some  dried  figs ;  when  in  came 
another  person  to  get  something  that  was  in  the 
room,  and  when  they  caught  sight  of  him  they 
ran  and  hid  in  a  hole. 

At  that  the  Country  Mouse  forgot  his  hunger, 
and  fetching  a  sigh,  said  to  the  other  :  — 

"  Please  yourself,  my  good  friend ;  eat  all  you 
want  and  get  rich,  —  and  be  in  a  fright  the 
whole  time.  As  for  me,  I  am  a  poor  fellow,  I 
know,  who  have  only  barley  and  wheat,  but  I 
am  quite  content  to  live  on  those,  and  have 
nothing  to  frighten  me." 

Those  who  have  the  plain  things  of  life  are 
often  better  off  than  the  rich. 


86      CINDERELLA;  OR   THE   GLASS  SLIPPER. 

THE  GNAT  AND  THE  BULL. 

A  GNAT  once  lit  on  a  Bull's  horn,  and  stayed 
there  a  long  while. 

When  he  was  about  to  fly  away,  he  asked  the 
Bull  if  he  would  like  to  have  him  go  now. 

"  Why,"  said  the  Bull,  « I  did  not  know  you 
were  there." 

One  might  answer  thus  a  perfectly  useless  man, 
who  was  neither  harmful  nor  helpful  whether  he 
was  present  or  absent. 

CINDERELLA;  OR  THE  GLASS  SLIPPER. 

I. 
CINDERELLA    IN    THE    KITCHEN. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  lived  a  man  and  his 
wife  and  one  beautiful  daughter.  The  wife  fell 
sick  and  died,  and  some  time  after  the  father 
married  again,  for  he  needed  some  one  to  take 
care  of  his  child.  The  new  wife  appeared  very 
well  before  the  wedding,  but  afterward  she 
showed  a  bad  temper.  She  had  two  children 
of  her  own,  and  they  were  proud  and  unkind 
like  their  mother.  They  could  not  bear  their 
gentle  sister,  and  they  made  her  do  all  the  hard 
work. 


CINDERELLA;  OR  THE   GLASS  SLIPPER.      87 

She  washed  the  dishes,  and  scrubbed  the 
stairs;  she  swept  the  floor  in  my  lady's  chamber, 
and  took  care  of  the  rooms  of  the  two  pert 
misses.  They  slept  on  soft  beds  in  fine  rooms, 
and  had  tall  looking-glasses,  so  that  they  could 
admire  themselves  from  top  to  toe ;  she  lay  on 
an  old  straw  sack  in  the  garret. 

She  bore  all  this  without  complaint.  She  did 
her  work,  and  then  sat  in  the  corner  among  the 
ashes  and  cinders.  So  her  two  sisters  gave  her 
the  name  of  Cinderella  or  the  cinder-maid.  But 
for  all  her  shabby  dress,  Cinderella  was  really 
much  more  beautiful  than  they ;  and  she  surely 
was  more  lovely. 

Now  the  King's  son  gave  a  ball,  and  he  in- 
vited all  the  rich  and  the  grand.  Cinderella's 
two  sisters  were  fine  ladies ;  they  were  to  go  to 
the  ball.  Perhaps  they  would  even  dance  with 
the  prince.  So  they  had  new  gowns  made,  and 
they  looked  over  all  their  finery. 

Here  was  fresh  work  for  poor  Cinderella. 
She  must  starch  their  ruffles  and  iron  their  linen. 
All  day  long  they  talked  of  nothing  but  their 
fine  clothes. 

"  I  shall  wear  my  red  velvet  dress,"  said  the 
elder, "  and  trim  it  with  my  point  lace." 

"  And  I,"  said  the  younger  sister,  "  shall  wear 
a  silk  gown,  but  I  shall  wear  over  it  a  gold 
brocade,  and  I  shall  put  on  my  diamonds.  You 
have  nothing  so  fine." 


88       CINDERELLA;  OR   THE   GLASS  SLIPPER. 

Then  they  began  to  quarrel  over  their  clothes, 
and  Cinderella  tried  to  make  peace  between  them. 
She  had  good  taste,  so  she  helped  them  about 
their  dresses,  and  offered  to  arrange  their  hair 
on  the  night  of  the  ball. 

While  she  was  thus  busy,  the  sisters  said  to 
her:  — 

"  And  pray,  Cinderella,  would  you  like  to  go 
to  the  ball?" 

"  Nay,"  said  the  poor  girl ;  "  you  are  mocking 
me.  It  is  not  for  such  as  I  to  go  to  balls." 

"True  enough,"  they  said  with  a  jeer. 
"Folks  would  laugh  to  see  a  cinder-maid  at 
a  court  ball." 

Any  one  else  would  have  dressed  their  hair  ill 
to  spite  them  for  their  rudeness.  But  Cinderella 
was  good-natured,  and  only  took  more  pains  to 
make  them  look  well. 

The  two  sisters  scarcely  ate  a  morsel  for  two 
days  before  the  ball.  Indeed,  it  was  not  very 
easy  for  them  to  eat  much,  they  had  laced  them- 
selves so  tightly.  They  wished  to  look  thin  and 
graceful.  They  lost  their  tempers  over  and  over, 
and  they  spent  most  of  the  time  before  their  tall 
glasses.  There  they  turned  and  turned  to  see 
how  they  looked  behind,  and  how  their  long 
trains  hung. 

At  last  the  evening  came,  and  off  they  set  in 
a  coach.  Cinderella  watched  them  till  they  were 


CINDERELLA;  OR   THE   GLASS  SLIPPER.     89 

out  of  sight,  and  then  she  sat  down  by  the 
kitchen  fire  and  began  to  weep. 

All  at  once  her  fairy  godmother  appeared, 
with  her  wand. 

"  What  are  you  crying  for,  my  little  maid  ?  " 

"  I  wish  —  I  wish,"  began  the  poor  girl,  but 
her  voice  was  choked  with  tears. 

"  You  wish  that  you  could  go  to  the  ball  ?  " 

Cinderella  nodded. 

"  Well,  then,  if  you  will  be  a  good  girl,  you 
shall  go.  Run  quick  and  fetch  me  a  pumpkin 
from  the  garden." 

Cinderella  flew  to  the  garden  and  brought 
back  the  finest  pumpkin  she  could  find.  She 
could  not  guess  what  use  it  would  be,  but  the 
fairy  scooped  it  hollow,  and  then  touched  it  with 
her  wand.  The  pumpkin  became  at  once  a 
splendid  gilt  coach. 

"  Now  fetch  me  the  mouse-trap  from  the 
pantry." 

In  the  mouse-trap  were  six  sleek  mice.  The 
fairy  opened  the  door,  and  as  they  ran  out  she 
touched  each  with  her  wand,  and  it  became  a 
gray  horse.  But  what  was  she  to  do  for  a 
coachman  ? 

"  We  might  look  for  a  rat  in  the  rat-trap," 
said  Cinderella. 

"  That  is  a  good  thought.  Run  and  bring 
the  rat-trap,  my  dear." 


90      CINDERELLA;  OR   THE   GLASS  SLIPPER. 

Back  came  Cinderella  with  the  trap.  In  it 
were  three  large  rats.  The  fairy  chose  one  that 
had  long  black  whiskers,  and  she  made  him  the 
coachman. 

"  Now  go  into  the  garden  and  bring  me  six 
lizards.  You  will  find  them  behind  the  water- 
pot." 

These  were  no  sooner  brought  than,  lo !  with 
a  touch  of  the  wand  they  were  turned  into  six 
footmen,  who  jumped  up  behind  the  coach,  as 
if  they  had  done  nothing  else  all  their  days. 
Then  the  fairy  said :  — 

"  Here  is  your  coach  and  six,  Cinderella ; 
your  coachman  and  your  footmen.  Now  you 
can  go  to  the  ball." 

"  What !  in  these  clothes  ?  "  and  Cinderella 
looked  down  at  her  ragged  frock.  The  fairy 
laughed  and  just  touched  her  with  the  wand. 
In  a  twinkling,  her  shabby  clothes  were  changed 
to  a  dress  of  gold  and  silver  tissue,  and  on  her 
bare  feet  were  silk  stockings  and  a  pair  of  glass 
slippers,  the  prettiest  ever  seen. 

"  Now  go  to  the  ball,  Cinderella ;  but  re- 
member, if  you  stay  one  moment  after  midnight, 
your  coach  will  instantly  become  a  pumpkin, 
your  horses  will  be  mice,  your  coachman  a  rat, 
and  your  footmen  lizards.  And  you  ?  you  will 
be  once  more  only  a  cinder-maid  in  a  ragged 
frock  and  with  bare  feet." 


CINDERELLA;  OR   THE   GLASS  SLIPPER.      91 

II. 
CINDERELLA    IN    THE    PALACE. 

CINDERELLA  promised  and  drove  away  in  high 
glee.  She  dashed  up  to  the  palace,  and  her  coach 
was  so  fine  that  the  king's  son  came  down  the 
steps  of  the  palace  to  hand  out  this  unknown 
princess.  He  led  her  to  the  hall  where  all  the 
guests  were  dancing. 

The  moment  she  appeared  all  voices  were 
hushed,  the  music  stopped,  and  the  dancers  stood 
still.  Such  a  beautiful  princess  had  never  been 
seen  !  Even  the  king,  old  as  he  was,  turned  to 
the  queen  and  said  :  — 

"  She  is  the  most  beautiful  being  I  ever  saw 
—  since  I  first  saw  you  !  " 

As  for  the  ladies  of  the  court,  they  were  all 
busy  looking  at  Cinderella's  clothes.  They 
meant  to  get  some  just  like  them  the  very  next 
day,  if  possible. 

The  prince  led  Cinderella  to  the  place  of  high- 
est rank,  and  asked  her  hand  for  the  next  dance, 
she  danced  with  so  much  grace  that  he  admired 
her  more  and  more.  Supper  was  brought  in, 
but  the  prince  could  not  keep  his  eyes  off  the 
beautiful  stranger.  Cinderella  went  and  sat  by 
her  sisters,  and  shared  with  them  the  fruit  which 
the  prince  gave  her.  They  were  very  proud  to 


92     CINDERELLA;   OR    THE  GLASS  SLIPPER. 

have  her  by  them,  for  they  never  dreamed  who 
she  really  was. 

Cinderella  was  talking  with  them,  when  she 
heard  the  clock  strike  the  quarter  hour  before 
twelve.  She  went  at  once  to  the  king  and  queen^ 
and  made  them  a  low  courtesy  and  bade  them 
good-night.  The  queen  said  there  was  to  be 
another  ball  the  next  night,  and  she  must  come 
to  that.  The  prince  led  her  down  the  steps  to 
her  coach,  and  she  drove  home. 

At  the  house  the  fairy  sat  waiting  for  Cinder- 
ella. The  maiden  began  to  tell  all  that  had 
happened,  and  was  in  the  midst  of  her  story, 
when  a  knock  was  heard  at  the  door.  It  was 
the  sisters  coming  home  from  the  ball.  The 
fairy  disappeared,  and  Cinderella  went  to  the 
door,  rubbing  her  eyes,  as  if  she  had  just  waked 
from  a  nap.  She  was  once  more  a  poor  little 
cinder-maid. 

"  How  late  you  are  !  "  she  said,  as  she  opened 
the  door. 

"  If  you  had  been  to  the  ball,  you  would  not 
have  thought  it  late,"  said  her  sisters.  "  There 
came  the  most  beautiful  princess  that  ever  was 
seen.  She  was  very  civil  to  us  a^id  loaded  us 
with  oranges  and  grapes." 

"  Who  was  she?"  asked  Cinderella. 

"  Nobody  knew  her  name.  The  prince  would 
give  his  eyes  to  know." 


CINDERELLA;  OR    THE   GLASS  SLIPPER.     93 

"  Ah !  how  I  should  like  to  see  her,"  said 
Cinderella.  "  Oh,  do,  my  Lady  Javotte,"  — 
that  was  the  name  of  the  elder  sister,  —  "  lend 
me  the  yellow  dress  you  wear  every  day,  and  let 
me  go  to  the  ball  and  have  a  peep  at  the  beauti- 
ful princess." 

"  What !  lend  my  yellow  gown  to  a  cinder- 
maid  !  I  am  not  so  silly  as  that." 

Cinderella  was  not  sorry  to  have  Javotte  say 
no  ;  she  would  have  been  puzzled  to  know  what 
to  do  if  her  sister  had  really  lent  her  the  dress 
she  begged  for. 

The  next  night  came,  and  the  sisters  again 
went  to  the  court  ball.  After  they  had  gone, 
the  fairy  came  as  before  and  made  Cinderella 
ready. 

"Now  remember,"  she  said,  as  the  coach 
drove  away,  "  remember  twelve  o'clock." 

Cinderella  was  even  more  splendid  than  on 
the  first  night,  and  the  king's  son  never  left  her 
side.  He  said  so  many  pretty  things  that  Cin- 
derella could  think  of  nothing  else.  She  forgot 
the  fairy's  warning ;  she  forgot  her  promise. 
Eleven  o'clock  came,  but  she  did  not  notice  the 
striking ;  the  half -hour  struck,  but  the  prince 
grew  more  charming,  and  Cinderella  could  hear 
nothing  but  his  voice ;  the  last  quarter  —  but 
still  Cinderella  sat  by  the  prince. 

Then  the  great  clock  on  the  tower  struck  the 


94      CINDERELLA;  OR   THE   GLASS  SLIPPER. 

first  stroke  of  twelve.  Up  sprang  Cinderella, 
and,  like  a  frightened  fawn,  she  fled  from  the 
room.  The  prince  started  to  follow  her,  but  she 
was  too  swift  for  him ;  in  her  flight,  one  of  her 
glass  slippers  fell  from  her  feet,  and  he  stopped 
to  pick  it  up. 

The  last  stroke  of  twelve  died  away,  as  Cin- 
derella darted  down  the  steps  of  the  palace.  In 
a  twinkling  the  gay  lady  was  gone ;  only  a 
shabby  cinder-maid  was  running  down  the  steps. 
The  splendid  coach  and  six,  driver  and  footman, 
—  all  were  gone ;  only  a  pumpkin  lay  on  the 
ground,  and  a  rat,  six  mice,  and  six  lizards  scam- 
pered off. 

Cinderella  reached  home,  quite  out  of  breath. 
She  had  saved  nothing  of  all  her  finery  but  one 
little  glass  slipper.  The  prince  had  its  mate,  but 
he  had  lost  the  princess.  He  asked  the  soldiers 
at  the  palace  gate  if  they  had  not  seen  her  drive 
away.  No ;  at  that  hour  only  a  ragged  girl  had 
passed  out. 

Soon  the  two  sisters  came  home  from  the  ball, 
and  Cinderella  asked  them  if  they  had  again 
seen  the  beautiful  lady.  Yes  ;  she  had  been  at 
the  ball,  but  she  had  left  suddenly,  and  no  one 
knew  what  had  become  of  her.  But  the  prince 
would  surely  find  her,  for  he  had  one  of  her 
glass  slippers. 

They  spoke  truly.     A  few  days  afterward,  the 


CINDERELLA;  OR    THE   GLASS  SLIPPER.      95 

king's  son  sent  a  messenger  with  a  trumpet  and 
the  slipper  through  all  the  city.  The  messenger 
sounded  his  trumpet  and  shouted  that  the  prince 
would  marry  the  lady  who  could  wear  the  glass 
slipper.  So  the  slipper  was  first  tried  on  by  all 
the  princesses  ;  then  by  all  the  duchesses ;  next 
by  all  the  persons  belonging  to  the  court ;  but 
in  vain  :  not  one  could  wear  it. 

Then  it  was  carried  to  all  the  fine  houses,  and 
it  came  at  last  to  the  two  sisters.  They  tried 
with  all  their  might  to  force  a  foot  into  the  fairy 
slipper,  but  they  could  not.  Cinderella  stood 
by,  and  said  :  — 

"Suppose  I  were  to  try."  Her  two  sisters 
jeered  at  her,  but  the  messenger  looked  at  Cin- 
derella. He  saw  that  she  was  very  fair,  and,  be- 
sides, he  had  orders  to  try  the  slipper  on  the 
foot  of  every  maiden  in  the  kingdom,  if  need 
were. 

So  he  bade  Cinderella  sit  down  on  a  three- 
legged  stool  in  the  kitchen.  She  put  out  her 
little  foot,  and  the  slipper  fitted  like  wax.  The 
sisters  stood  in  amaze.  Then  Cinderella  put  her 
hand  into  her  pocket  and  drew  forth  the  other 
glass  slipper,  and  put  it  on  her  other  foot. 

The  moment  that  Cinderella  did  this,  the 
fairy,  who  stood  by  unseen,  touched  her  with 
her  wand,  and  the  cinder-maid  again  became -the 
beautiful,  gayly-dressed  lady.  The  sisters  saw 


96  THE  FOX  AND   THE  LION. 

that  she  was  the  same  one  whom  they  had  seen 
at  the  ball.  They  thought  how  ill  they  had 
treated  her  all  these  years,  and  they  fell  at  her 
feet  and  asked  her  to  forgive  them. 

Cinderella  was  as  good  now  as  she  had  been 
when  she  was  a  cinder-maid.  She  freely  for- 
gave her  sisters,  and  took  them  to  the  palace 
with  her,  for  she  was  now  to  be  the  prince's 
wife ;  and  when  the  old  king  and  queen  died, 
the  prince  and  Cinderella  reigned  in  their  stead. 


THE  FOX  AND  THE  LION. 

A  Fox  who  had  never  seen  a  Lion  met  one 
by  chance,  and  when  he  saw  him  was  so  afraid 
that  he  almost  died.  When  he  met  him  a  sec- 
ond time,  he  was  afraid,  to  be  sure,  but  not  as  at 
first.  The  third  time  he  saw  him,  the  Fox  was 
so  bold  that  he  went  up  to  the  Lion  and  spoke 
to  him. 

This  fable  teaches  that,  when  we  get  used  to 
fearful  things,  they  do  not  frighten  us  so  much 
as  at  first. 


THE  SLEEPING  BEAUTY  IN  THE    WOOD. 
I. 

THE     BEAUTY     GOES     TO     SLEEP. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  lived  a  king  and 
queen  who  grieved  sorely  that  they  had  no 
child.  But  at  last  a  daughter  was  born,  and 
the  king  was  overjoyed.  He  gave  a  great  feast, 
and  asked  to  it  all  the  fairies  in  the  land,  seven 
in  all.  He  hoped  that  each  would  give  the  child 
a  gift. 

In  front  of  each  fairy  at  the  table  was  set  a 
heavy  gold  plate,  and  by  each  plate  a  gold  knife 
and  fork.  Just  as  they  sat  down  to  the  feast,  in 
came  an  old  fairy  who  had  not  been  invited. 
No  one  knew  she  was  living.  Fifty  years  before 
she  had  shut  herself  up  in  a  tower,  and  had  not 
been  seen  since. 

The  king  hurried  off  to  find  a  gold  plate  and 
knife  and  fork  for  her  also.  But  nothing  could 
be  found  so  fine  as  the  seven  plates  which  had 
been  made  to  order  for  the  seven  fairies.  The 
old  fairy  thought  herself  ill-used  and  grumbled 
in  a  low  voice.  At  that,  one  of  the  young 
fairies  feared  she  meant  mischief  to  the  child, 


98         SLEEPING  BEAUTY  IN  THE  WOOD, 

and  so,  when  the  feast  was  over,  hid  herself 
behind  the  hangings  in  the  hall.  We  shall 
soon  see  why  she  did  this. 

The  fairies  now  began  to  give  gifts  to  the 
child,  beginning  with  the  youngest.  She  gave 
her  beauty;  the  next  gave  her  wit;  the  third 
gave  her  grace ;  the  fourth  said  she  should  dance 
perfectly  ;  the  fifth  gave  her  a  voice  to  sing ;  the 
sixth  said  she  should  play  beautifully  on  the  harp. 

The  turn  of  the  old  fairy  had  now  come,  and 
she  shook  her  head  wickedly  and  said  the  child 
would  grow  up,  but  when  she  was  grown,  she 
would  pierce  her  hand,  when  spinning,  and  die 
of  the  wound.  At  this,  all  the  company  began 
to  weep,  but  the  fairy  who  had  hidden  came 
forward  and  said  :  — 

"  Be  of  good  cheer,  king  and  queen.  Your 
daughter  shall  not  so  die.  I  cannot  entirely 
undo  what  my  elder  has  done.  The  princess 
must  pierce  her  hand  when  spinning,  but  instead 
of  dying  she  shall  fall  into  a  deep  sleep.  The 
sleep  shall  last  a  hundred  years ;  at  the  end  of 
that  time  a  king's  son  will  come  to  wake  her." 

The  king  was  very  sad,  but  he  hoped  he 
might  prevent  the  evil.  So  he  made  a  law  that 
no  one  in  the  kingdom  should  spin  or  have  a 
spinning-wheel  in  the  house,  under  pain  of  in- 
stant death. 

All  went   well   for  fifteen    years.      Then  it 


SLEEPING  BEAUTY  IN  THE  WOOD.         99 

chanced  that  the  princess  was  with  the  king  and 
queen  in  one  of  their  castles,  and  was  spying 
about  for  herself.  She  came  to  a  little  chamber 
at  the  top  of  a  tower,  and  there  sat  an  honest 
old  woman  spinning.  She  was  very  old  and 
deaf,  and  had  never  heard  of  the  king's  com- 
mand. 

"  What  are  you  doing  ?  "  asked  the  princess. 

"  I  am  spinning,  my  pretty  child." 

"How  charming  it  is!"  said  the  princess. 
"  How  do  you  do  it  ?  Let  me  try  if  I  can  spin." 
She  seized  the  spindle,  but  she  was  hasty  and 
careless,  and  pierced  her  hand  with  its  point. 
She  fainted,  and  the  old  woman,  in  great  alarm, 
ran  for  help.  People  came  running  from  all 
sides,  but  they  could  not  rouse  her. 

The  king  heard  the  noise  and  came  also. 
Then  he  saw  that  the  cruel  fairy  had  had  her 
wish.  His  daughter  would  not  wake  for  a  hun- 
dred years.  He  laid  her  on  the  bed  in  the  best 
room,  and  stood  sadly  looking  upon  her.  She 
was  asleep ;  he  could  hear  her  breathe ;  her 
cheeks  were  full  of  color,  but  her  eyes  were 
closed. 

Now  the  good  fairy,  who  had  said  the  princess 
should  wake  in  a  hundred  years,  was  thousands 
of  miles  away  at  the  time.  But  she  knew  of  it, 
and  came  at  once  in  a  chariot  of  fire  drawn  by 
dragons.  The  king  came  to  meet  her,  his  eyes 
red  with  weeping. 


100      SLEEPING  BEAUTY  IN  THE  WOOD. 

The  good  fairy  was  very  wise  and  saw  that 
the  princess  would  not  know  what  to  do  if  she 
awoke  all  alone  in  the  castle,  in  a  hundred  years. 
So  this  is  what  she  did. 

She  touched  with  her  wand  every  one  in  the 
castle  except  the  king  and  the  queen.  She 
touched  the  maids  of  honor,  the  gentlemen,  the 
officers,  the  stewards,  cooks,  boys,  guards,  porters, 
pages,  footmen ;  she  touched  the  horses  in  the 
stable,  the  grooms,  the  great  mastiff  in  the  court- 
yard, and  the  tiny  lapdog  of  the  princess  that 
was  on  the  bed  beside  her. 

The  moment  she  touched  them,  they  all  fell 
asleep  just  as  they  were,  not  to  wake  again  until 
the  time  came  for  their  mistress  to  do  so,  and 
then  they  all  would  be  ready  to  wait  on  her. 
Even  the  fire  went  to  sleep,  and  the  roasting-spit 
before  the  fire  with  its  fowls  ready  for  roasting. 

It  was  the  work  of  a  moment.  The  king  and 
queen  kissed'their  daughter  good-by  and  left  the 
castle.  The  king  issued  a  command  that  no  one 
was  to  go  near  the  castle.  That  was  needless ; 
for  in  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  a  wood  had  grown 
about  it  so  thick  and  thorny  that  nothing  could 
get  through  it.  The  castle-top  itself  could  only 
be  seen  from  afar. 


SLEEPING  BEAUTY  IN  THE  WOOD.      101 

II. 
THE     BEAUTY     WAKES. 

AFTER  a  few  years  the  king  and  queen  died 
They  had  no  other  child,  and  the  kingdom 
passed  into  the  hands  of  a  distant  family.  A 
hundred  years  went  by.  The  son  of  the  king 
who  was  then  reigning  was  out  hunting  one  day, 
when  he  noticed  the  tower  of  a  castle  in  the  dis- 
tance. He  asked  what  castle  it  was. 

All  manner  of  answers  were  given  to  him. 
One  said  it  was  a  fairy  castle ;  another  said  that 
a  great  monster  lived  there.  At  last  an  old 
man  said  :  — 

"Prince,  more  than  fifty  years  ago  I  heard 
my  father  say  that  there  was  in  that  castle  the 
most  beautiful  princess  ever  seen ;  that  she  was 
to  sleep  for  a  hundred  years,  and  to  be  waked 
at  last  by  the  king's  son,  who  was  to  marry 
her." 

The  young  prince  at  these  words  felt  himself 
on  fire.  He  had  not  a  doubt  that  he  was  the 
one  to  awaken  the  princess.  He  set  out  at 
once  for  the  wood,  and  when  he  drew  near,  the 
trees  and  thorns  opened  on  one  side  and  the 
other  to  offer  him  a  path. 

He  was  on  a  long,  straight  road,  and  at  the 
end  was  the  castle  in  full  view.  He  turned  to 


102      SLEEPING  BEAUTY  IN   THE  WOOD. 

look  for  his  comrades.  Not  one  was  to  be  seen. 
The  wood  had  closed  again  behind  him.  He 
was  alone,  and  all  was  still  about  him.  Forward 
he  strode  and  came  to  the  castle-gate.  He 
entered  the  courtyard,  and  stood  still  in  amaze- 
ment. 

On  every  side  were  the  bodies  of  men  and 
animals.  But  the  faces  of  the  men  were  rosy ; 
it  was  plain  that  they  were  asleep.  His  steps 
sounded  on  the  marble  floor.  He  entered  the 
guardroom.  There  the  guards  stood  drawn  up 
in  line,  with  then*  spears  in  their  hands,  but  they 
did  not  move.  They  were  fast  asleep. 

He  passed  through  one  room  after  another; 
people  were  asleep  in  chairs,  on  benches,  stand- 
ing, sitting,  lying  down.  He  entered  a  beauti- 
ful room,  covered  with  gold,  and  saw  the  most 
wonderful  sight  of  all. 

There  lay  a  maiden  so  fair  that  she  seemed  to 
belong  to  another  world.  He  drew  near  and 
knelt  beside  her.  She  did  not  stir.  Her  hand 
lay  on  her  breast,  and  he  touched  his  lips  to  it. 

As  he  did  this,  her  eyes  opened  and  looked  at 
the  young  man.  She  smiled,  and  said  : — 

"  Have  you  come,  my  prince  ?  I  have  waited 
long  for  you," 

The  prince  hardly  knew  how  to  answer,  but 
he  soon  found  his  voice,  and  they  talked  for 
hours,  and  had  not  then  said  half  that  was  in 
their  heads  to  say. 


SLEEPING  BEAUTY  IN   THE  WOOD.       103 

Now  the  moment  that  the  princess  waked,  her 
little  lapdog  waked  also.  The  great  mastiff  in 
the  court-yard  awoke ;  the  horses  in  the  stable 
and  the  grooms  awoke ;  the  footmen,  the  pageSj 
the  porters,  the  guards,  the  boys,  the  cooks,  the 
stewards,  the  officers,  the  gentlemen  and  the 
maids  of  honor,  all  awoke.  The  fire  began  to 
burn  again,  the  spits  turned  round,  and  the 
fowls  began  to  roast. 

So,  while  the  prince  and  the  princess  forgot 
the  hours  in  talk,  these  people  began  to  be  hun- 
gry. The  maids  of  honor  went  to  the  princess 
to  tell  her  that  they  all  waited  for  her.  Then 
the  prince  took  the  princess  by  the  hand  and  led 
her  into  the  hall. 

She  was  dressed  in  great  splendor,  but  the 
prince  did  not  hint  that  she  looked  as  the  picture 
of  his  great-grandmother  looked.  He  thought 
her  all  the  more  charming  for  that,  but  he  did 
not  tell  her  so.  The  musicians  played. excellent 
but  old  music  at  supper;  and  after  supper,  to 
lose  no  time,  the  prince  and  princess  were  mar- 
ried in  the  chapel  of  the  castle. 

The  next  day  they  left  the  castle.  Ah1  the 
people  followed  them  down  the  long  path.  The 
wood  opened  again  to  let  them  through.  Out1 
side  they  met  the  prince's  men,  and  glad  they 
were  to  see  the  prince  once  more.  He  turned 
to  show  them  the  castle,  when,  lo  I  there  was  no 
.  castle  to  be  seen,  and  no  wood. 


104  THE  FOX  AND   THE  STORK. 

But  the  prince  and  princess  rode  gaily  away, 
and  when  the  old  king  and  queen  died,  they 
reigned  in  their  stead. 


THE  EAGLE  SHOT  WITH  AN  EAGLE'S 
ARROW. 

AN  EAGLE  came  down  out  of  the  sky  and 
lighted  on  a  rock,  where  he  meant  to  watch  for 
a  Hare. 

Some  one  saw  the  Eagle,  and  drew  a  bow  and 
shot  him.  The  arrow  drove  fast  into  the  Eagle, 
and  the  feathers  on  the  arrow  stood  out  plainly 
before  his  eyes.  They  were  feathers  from  an 
Eagle's  wing. 

The  Eagle  closed  his  eyes,  and  said :  — 

"  Oh,  this  is  worst  of  all,  —  to  be  killed  by  an 
arrow  with  Eagle's  feathers." 

This  fable  teaches  how  sore  a  thing  it  is  to  be 
in  peril  from  what  belongs  to  one's  self. 


THE   FOX  AND  THE   STORK. 

THE  Fox  invited  the  Stork  to  sup  with  him, 
and  placed  a  shallow  dish  on  the  table.  The 
Stork,  with  her  long  bill,  could  get  nothing  out 
of  the  dish,  while  the  Fox  could  lap  up  the  food 
with  his  tongue ;  and  so  the  Fox  laughed  at  the 
Stork. 


THE  ANT  AND   THE   GRASSHOPPER.     105 

The  Stork,  in  her  turn,  asked  the  Fox  to  dine 
with  her,  and  she  placed  the  food  in  a  long- 
necked  jar,  from  which  she  could  easily  feed 
with  her  bill,  while  the  Fox  could  get  nothing ; 
and  that  was  tit  for  tat. 


THE  SPENDTHRIFT  AND  THE  SWALLOW. 

A  WILD  young  fellow,  who  had  spent  all  his 
father's  money,  and  had  only  a  cloak  left  upon 
his  back,  when  he  saw  a  Swallow  flying  about 
before  it  was  time  said :  "  Ah,  summer  has 
come !  I  shall  not  need  my  cloak  any  longer  ; 
so  I  will  sell  it."  But  afterwards  a  storm  came, 
and,  when  it  was  past,  he  saw  the  poor  Swallow 
dead  on  the  ground.  "  Ah,  my  friend  !  "  said 
he,  "  you  are  lost  yourself,  and  you  have  ruined 
me." 

One  Swallow  does  not  make  a  summer. 


THE  ANT  AND  THE  GRASSHOPPER. 

ON  a  warm  day  in  summer,  an  Ant  was  busy 
.in  the  field  gathering  grains  of  wheat  and  corn, 
which  he  laid  up  for  winter  food.  A  Grass- 
hopper saw  him  at  work,  and  laughed  at  him 
for  toiling  so  hard,  when  others  were  at  ease. 

The  Ant  said  nothing.  But  afterwards,  when 
winter  came,  and  the  ground  was  hard,  the 


106    THE  WOLF  AND  THE  SHEPHERD. 

Grasshopper  was  nearly  dead  with  hunger,  and 
came  to  the  Ant  to  beg  something  to  eat.  Then 
the  Ant  said  to  him :  — 

"  If  you  had  worked  when  I  did,  instead  of 
laughing  at  me,  you  would  not  now  be  in  need." 


THE  LION  AND  THE  FOX. 

A  LION  that  had  grown  old,  and  had  no 
more  strength  to  forage  for  food,  saw  that  he 
must  get  it  by  cunning.  He  went  into  his  den 
and  crept  into  a  corner,  and  made  believe  that 
he  was  very  sick. 

All  the  animals  about  came  in  to  take  a  look 
at  him,  and,  as  they  came,  he  snapped  them  up. 
Now,  when  a  good  many  beasts  had  been  caught 
in  this  way,  the  Fox,  who  guessed  the  trick, 
came  along.  He  took  his  stand  a  little  way  from 
the  den,  and  asked  the  Lion  how  he  did. 

The  Lion  said  he  was  very  sick,  and  begged 
him  to  come  into  the  den  and  see  him. 

"  So  I  would,"  said  the  Fox,  « but  I  notice 
that  all  the  footprints  point  into  the  den,  and 
there  are  none  that  point  out." 


THE   WOLF  AND  THE  SHEPHERD. 

A  WOLF  once  walked  behind  a  flock  of  Sheep, 
and  did  them  no  harm.     At  first,  the  Shepherd 


THE   FLIES  AND   THE  POT  OF  HONEY.     107 

treated  him  as  an  enemy,  and  kept  watch  against 
him ;  but  when  the  Wolf  made  no  sign  of  hurt- 
ing the  Sheep,  the  Shepherd  began  to  think  he 
was  quite  as  good  as  a  watch-dog. 

So  one  day,  when  the  Shepherd  wished  to  go 
to  the  city,  he  left  the  Sheep  in  the  care  of  this 
quiet  Wolf.  That  was  the  chance  the  Wolf 
wanted,  and  he  made  sad  havoc  in  the  flock. 
When  the  Shepherd  came  back  and  saw  the 
Sheep  scattered,  he  said :  — 

"  It  serves  me  right ;  for  why  did  I  trust 
Sheep  to  a  Wolf?" 


THE  FLIES  AND  THE  POT  OF  HONEY. 

A  POT  of  Honey  was  upset  in  the  pantry,  and 
the  Flies  crowded  about  to  eat  of  it.  It  was  so 
sticky  that  they  could  not  get  away  ;  their  feet 
were  held  fast,  so  that  they  could  not  fly,  and 
they  began  to  choke  to  death. 

"  What  wretches  we  are,"  they  cried,  "  to  die 
just  for  a  moment  of  pleasure  !  " 

So  it  is  that  greediness  is  the  cause  of  many 
evils. 


108         THE  FOX   THAT  LOST  HIS   TAIL. 


THE  CAT,  THE  MONKEY,  AND  THE  CHEST- 
NUTS. 

A  CAT  and  a  Monkey  were  sitting  one  day  by 
the  hearth,  watching  some  chestnuts  which  their 
master  had  laid  down  to  roast.  The  chestnuts 
had  begun  to  burst  with  the  heat,  and  the  Mon- 
key said  to  the  Cat :  — 

"  It  is  plain  that  your  paws  were  made  to  pull 
out  those  chestnuts.  Your  paws  are,  indeed,  ex- 
actly like  our  master's  hands." 

The  Cat  was  greatly  flattered  by  this  speech, 
and  reached  forward  for  the  tempting  chestnuts ; 
but  scarcely  had  she  touched  the  hot  ashes  than 
she  drew  back  with  a  cry,  for  she  had  burned 
her  paw.  She  tried  again,  and  made  out  to  get 
one  chestnut;  then  she  pulled  another,  and  a 
third,  though  each  time  she  singed  the  hair  on 
her  paws. 

When  she  could  pull  no  more,  she  turned,  and 
found  the  Monkey  had  taken  this  time  to  crack 
the  chestnuts  and  eat  them. 


THE  FOX  THAT  LOST   HIS  TAIL. 

A  Fox  once  got  caught  in  a  trap,  and  lost  his 
tail  in  getting  loose.  He  was  so  ashamed  that 
he  thought  life  not  worth  living.  Then  he  be- 


DICK  WHITTINGTON  AND  HIS   CAT.      109 

thought  himself  and  called  the  rest  of  the  Foxes, 
and  begged  them  to  cut  off  their  tails,  telling 
them  that  the  tail  was  not  only  ugly,  but  a  dead 
weight  hung  on  behind.  But  one  of  the  Foxes 
spoke  up  and  said  :  — 

"  My  good  friend,  that  is  all  very  well,  but  if 
it  were  not  to  help  your  case,  you  never  would 
advise  us  to  cut  off  our  tails." 


DICK  WHITTINGTON  AND  HIS  CAT. 

L 
DICK    GOES    TO    LONDON. 

IN  the  olden  times  there  lived  in  the  country^ 
in  England,  a  boy  by  the  name  of  Dick  Whitting- 
ton.  He  did  not  know  who  his  parents  were, 
for  he  had  been  born  and  brought  up  in  the 
poor-house.  There  he  was  cruelly  treated,  and 
when  he  was  seven  years  of  age,  he  ran  away 
and  lived  by  what  he  could  get  from  kind  peo- 
pie. 

He  heard  that  the  streets  of  London  were 
paved  with  gold,  and  being  now  a  sturdy  youth, 
he  set  out  for  the  city  to  make  his  fortune.  He 
did  not  know  the  way,  but  he  fell  in  with  a  car- 
ter, who  was  bound  for  London,  and  he  followed 
the  cart.  When  night  came,  he  helped  the  car- 


110     DICK  WHITTINGTON  AND  HIS   CAT. 

ter  by  rubbing  down  the  horses,  and  for  this  he 
was  paid  with  a  supper. 

He  trudged  on  thus,  day  after  day,  until  they 
came  to  the  famous  city.  The  carter  was  afraid 
Dick  would  hang  about  him  and  give  him  trouble, 
so  he  gave  him  a  penny  and  told  hitn  to  begone 
and  find  some  work. 

Dick  went  from  street  to  street,  but  he  knew 
no  one ;  he  was  ragged  and  forlorn,  and  looked 
like  a  beggar.  Nobody  gave  him  anything  to 
do.  Once  in  a  while  some  one  gave  him  some- 
thing to  eat,  but  at  last  he  had  nothing. 

For  two  days  he  went  about  hungry  and  al- 
most starved,  but  he  would  rather  starve  than 
steal.  At  night,  at  the  end  of  the  second  day, 
he  came  to  a  merchant's  house  in  Leadenhall 
Street,  and  stood  before  it,  weary  and  faint. 
The  ill-natured  cook  saw  him  and  came  out  and 
said  :  — 

"  Go  away  from  here,  or  I  will  kick  you 
away !  "  At  this,  he  crept  off  a  little  distance 
and  lay  down  on  the  ground,  for  he  was  too 
weak  to  stand.  As  he  lay  there,  the  merchant 
who  lived  in  the  house,  came  home  and  stopped 
to  speak  to  him.  He  spoke  sharply,  and  told 
him  to  get  up,  that  it  was  a  shame  for  him  to  be 
lying  there. 

Poor  Dick  got  up,  and  after  falling  once, 
through  faintness  and  want  of  food,  made  out  to 


DICK  WHITTINGTON  AND  HIS  CAT.      HI 

say  that  he  was  a  poor  country  boy,  nearly 
starved.  He  would  do  any  work  if  he  might 
have  food. 

Mr.  Fitzwarren,  the  merchant,  saw  in  what  a 
wretched  plight  he  was,  and  took  pity  on  him. 
He  brought  him  into  the  house,  and  bade  the 
servants  look  after  him ;  he  gave  him  a  place 
under  the  cook,  and  this  was  the  beginning  of 
Dick's  fortune.  But  Dick  had  a  hard  time  of  it. 
The  servants  made  sport  of  him,  and  the  ill- 
natured  cook  said :  — 

"  Do  you  know  what  you  are  to  do  ?  You 
are  to  come  under  me.  So  look  sharp  ;  clean 
the  spits  and  the  pans,  make  the  fires,  wind  up  the 
roasting-jack,  and  do  nimbly  all  the  dirty  work  I 
set  you  about,  or  else  I  will  break  your  head 
with  my  ladle,  and  kick  you  about  like  a  foot- 
ball." 

This  was  cold  comfort,  but  it  was  better  than 
starving.  What  gave  him  more  hope  was  the 
kind  notice  he  had  from  his  master's  daughter, 
Mistress  Alice.  She  heard  Dick's  story  from  her 
father,  and  called  for  the  boy.  She  asked  him 
questions,  and  he  was  so  honest  in  his  answers, 
that  she  went  to  her  father,  and  said :  — 

"  That  poor  boy  whom  you  brought  into  the 
house  is  a  good,  honest  fellow.  I  am  sure  he 
will  be  very  useful.  He  can  clean  shoes,  and 
run  errands,  and  do  many  things  which  our  ser- 
vants do  not  like  to  do." 


112        DICK  WHITTINGTON  AND  HIS  CAT. 
II. 

DICK'S   CAT. 

•  So  Dick  was  kept,  and  a  cot  bed  was  given 
Kim  in  the  garret.  He  was  up  early  and  worked 
late.  He  left  nothing  undone  that  was  given 
him  to  do.  For  all  that,  he  could  not  please  the 
cook,  who  was  very  sour  to  him.  Still,  he  bore 
her'  blows  rather  than  leave  so  good  a  home. 
Then  the  cook  told  tales  about  him,  and  tried  to 
get  him  sent  away,  but  Mistress  Alice  heard  of 
it ;  she  knew  how  ill-tempered  the  cook  was,  and 
so  she  made  her  father  keep  Dick. 

This  was  not  the  whole  of  Dick  Whittington's 
trqjible.  The  garret  where  he  lay  at  night  had 
long  been  empty,  and  a  great  number  of  mice 
had  made  their  home  in  it.  They  ran  over 
Dick's  face,  and  kept  up  such  a  racket  that  he 
knew  not  which  was  worse,  the  cook  by  day  or 
the  mice  by  night. 

He  could  only  hope  that  the  cook  might 
marry  or  get  tired  of  the  place,  and  that  he 
might  in  some  way  get  a  cat.  It  chanced,  soon 
after,  that  a  merchant  came  to  dinner,  and  as  it 
rained  hard,  he  stayed  all  night.  In  the  morning 
Dick  cleaned  the  merchant's  shoes  and  brought 
them  to  his  door.  For  this  service  the  merchant 
gave  him  a  penny. 


DICK  WHITT1NGTON  AND  HIS  CAT.        113 

As  he  went  through  the  street  on  an  errand 
that  morning,  he  saw  a  woman  with  a  cat  under 
her  arm.  He  asked  her  the  price  of  the  cat. 

"  It  is  a  good  mouser,"  said  the  woman  :  "  you 
may  have  it  for  a  sixpence." 

"  But  I  have  only  a  penny,"  said  Dick.  The 
woman  found  that  she  really  could  get  nothing 
more,  so  she  sold  the  cat  to  Dick  for  a  penny. 
He  brought  it  home,  and  kept  it  out  of  the  way 
all  day  for  fear  the  cook  should  see  it ;  then  at 
night  he  took  the  cat  up  to  the  garret,  and  made 
her  work  for  her  living.  Puss  soon  rid  him  of 
one  plague. 

When  Mr.  Fitzwarren  sent  out  a  ship  to  trade 
with  far  countries,  he  used  to  call  his  servants 
together,  and  give  each  a  chance  to  make  some 
money,  by  sending  out  goods  in  the  ship.  He 
thought  that  thus  his  ship  had  better  fortune. 

Now  he  was  again  making  a  venture,  and 
each  of  the  servants  brought  something  to  send ; 
all  but  Whittington.  Mistress  Alice  saw  that  he 
did  not  come,  and  she  sent  for  him,  meaning  to 
give  him  some  simple  goods,  that  he  too  might 
have  a  share  in  the  venture. 

When,  after  many  excuses,  he  was  obliged  to 
appear,  he  fell  on  his  knees,  and  prayed  them 
not  to  jeer  at  a  poor  boy.  He  had  nothing  he 
could  claim  for  his  own  but  a  cat,  which  he  had 
bought  with  a  penny  given  him  for  cleaning 


114         DICK  WHITT1NGTON  AND  U1S  CAT. 

Upon  this  Mistress  Alice  offered  to  lay  some- 
thing down  for  him  ;  but  her  father  told  her  the 
custom  was  for  each  to  send  something  of  his 
own.  So  he  bade  Dick  bring  his  cat,  which  he 
did  with  many  tears,  and  gave  him  over  to  the 
master 'of  the  ship. 

The  cook,  and  indeed  all  the  servants,  after 
this  plagued  Dick  so  sorely,  and  jeered  at  him  so 
much  for  sending  his  cat,  that  he  could  bear  it 
no  longer.  He  said  to  himself  that  he  would 
leave  the  house  and  try  his  fortune  elsewhere. 


m. 

BOW     BELLS. 

HE  packed  his  bundle  one  night,  and  the  next 
day,  early,  set  forth  to  seek  his  fortune.  He  left 
the  house  behind  him,  but  his  heart  began  to 
sink.  However,  he  would  not  turn  back,  and  he 
kept  on,  but  at  last  sat  down  in  the  field  to 
think. 

Just  then  the  Bow  Bells,  that  is,  the  bells  of 
a  church  in  Bow  Street,  began  to  ring  merrily. 
Dick  heard  them,  and  as  they  rang,  he  fancied 
he  heard  them  sing,  — 

"  Turn  again,  Whittington, 
Lord  Mayor  of  London." 


DICK  WHITTINGTON  AND  HIS  CAT.         115 

That  was  a  fine  song  to  hear,  and  Dick  began 
to  pluck  up  heart  again.  Still  the  bells  rang. 
It  was  very  early ;  no  one  was  yet  astir  at  the 
merchant's  house,  and  Dick,  with  new  courage, 
took  up  his  bundle,  obeyed  the  bells,  and  walked 
quickly  back  to  the  house.  He  had  left  the 
door  open,  so  he  crept  in  and  took  up  his  daily 
task. 

Now,  about  this  time,  the  ship  which  carried 
Dick's  cat  was  driven  by  the  winds,  and  came 
to  a  place  on  the  Barbary  coast,  where  the 
English  seldom  went.  The  people  received  the 
master  of  the  ship  well,  and  he  traded  with  them. 
As  his  wares  were  new,  they  were  very  welcome, 
and  at  last  the  king  of  that  country,  being 
greatly  pleased,  sent  for  the  captain  to  come 
and  dine  at  the  palace. 

The  dinner,  after  the  custom  of  the  country, 
was  not  set  on  a  table,  but  the  cloth  was  laid  on 
the  floor.  The  guests  sat  cross-legged  before 
the  feast.  But  when  the  dishes  were  set  down, 
the  smell  of  the  dinner  brought  a  great  company 
of  rats,  and  these  rats  helped  themselves  without 
fear. 

The  master  of  the  ship  was  amazed  and  asked 
the  nobles,  who  sat  there,  if  it  was  not  very  un- 
pleasant to  have  this  swarm  of  rats. 

"  Oh,"  said  they,  "  very  much  so.  The  king 
would  give  half  his  wealih  to  be  rid  of  them. 


116       DICK  WHITTINGTON  AND  HIS  CAT. 

They  not  only  come  to  the  table,  but  they  make 
free  with  his  chamber  and  even  his  bed." 

"  Well,"  said  the  captain,  thinking  at  once  of 
Dick's  cat,  "  I  have  an  English  beast  on  board 
my  ship  which  will  quickly  clear  the  palace  of 
all  the  rats." 

"  Say  you  so  ?  "  said  the  king,  when  he  heard 
of  this.  "  For  such  a  thing  I  will  load  your  ship 
with  gold,  diamonds,  and  pearls."  At  that  the 
shrewd  captain  made  much  of  the  cat. 

"  She  is  the  most  famous  thing  in  the  world," 
said  he.  "  I  cannot  spare  her,  for  she  keeps  my 
ship  clear  of  rats,  or  else  they  would  spoil  all  my 
goods."  But  the  king  would  not  take  no  for  an 
answer. 

"  No  price  shall  part  us,"  he  said.  So  the  cat 
was  sent  for,  and  the  table  was  again  spread. 
The  rats  came  as  before,  but  the  captain  let  the 
cat  loose,  and  she  made  short  work  of  them. 
Then  she  came  purring  and  curling  up  her  tail 
before  the  king,  as  if  she  would  have  her  re- 
ward. 

The  king  was  so  pleased  with  the  cat,  that 
he  gave  ten  times  more  for  her  than  for  all  the 
goods  in  the  ship.  Then  the  ship  sailed  away 
with  a  fair  wind,  and  arrived  safe  at  London. 
She  was  the  richest  ship  that  ever  entered  port. 


DICK  WHITTINGTON  AND  HIS  CAT.        117 

IV. 
LORD     MAYOR    WHITTINGTON. 

THE  master  took  the  box  of  pearls  and  jewels 
with  him  on  shore,  and  went  straight  to  the 
merchant's  house.  He  gave  his  account  to  Mr. 
Fitzwarren,  who  was  greatly  pleased  at  the  for- 
tunate voyage,  and  called  his  servants  together, 
to  receive  each  their  profit.  Then  the  master 
showed  the  box  of  pearls  and  jewels,  and  told 
the  story  of  Whittington's  cat,  and  how  Puss 
had  earned  this  wealth. 

"  Call  Mr.  Whittington,"  said  Mr.  Fitzwarren. 
"  I  will  not  take  one  farthing  from  him." 

Now  Dick  was  in  the  kitchen  cleaning  pots 
and  pans.  When  he  was  told  that  the  merchant 
had  sent  for  Mr.  Whittington,  he  thought  every 
one  was  making  fun  of  him,  and  he  would  not 
go. 

At  last,  since  no  excuse  would  be  taken,  he 
went  as  far  as  the  door.  The  merchant  bade 
him  come  in,  and  placed  a  chair  for  him.  At 
that  poor  Dick  was  sure  they  were  making  fun 
of  him,  and  the  tears  came  into  his  eyes. 

"  I  am  only  a  simple  fellow,"  he  said.  "  I  do 
not  mean  harm  to  any  one.  Do  not  mock  me." 

"Indeed,  Mr.  Whittington,  we  are  serious 
with  you,"  said  the  merchant.  "  You  are  a 


118        DICK  WHITTINGTON  AND  HIS  CAT. 

much  richer  man  than  I  am,"  and  he  gave  him 
the  box  of  pearls  and  jewels  worth  quite  three 
hundred  thousand  pounds. 

At  first  Dick  could  not  believe  his  good  for- 
tune. When  at  last  he  was  persuaded,  he  fell 
upon  his  knees  and  thanked  God  who  had  been 
so  good  to  him.  Then  he  turned  to  his  master 
and  wished  to  give  him  of  his  wealth,  but  Mr. 
Fitzwarren  said :  — 

"No,  Mr.  Whittington.  I  will  not  take  a 
penny  from  you.  It  is  all  yours." 

At  that  Dick  turned  to  Mistress  Alice,  who 
also  refused.  He  bowed  low,  and  said  :  — 

"  Madam,  whenever  you  please  to  make  choice 
of  a  husband,  I  will  make  you  the  greatest  for- 
tune in  the  world." 

Then  he  gave  freely  to  his  fellow  servants. 
Even  to  his  enemy,  the  cook,  he  gave  a  hun- 
dred pounds. 

Richard  Whittington  was  now  a  rich  man. 
He  laid  aside  his  poor  clothes,  and  was  dressed 
well  and  handsomely.  He  had  grown  strong 
and  tall  in  service,  and  was  indeed  a  fine  man 
to  look  upon. 

It  was  seen,  too,  that  he  was  well  behaved  and 
of  a  good  mind  and  heart.  Mr.  Fitzwarren 
made  him  known  to  the  other  merchants,  and 
let  him  see  how  business  was  carried  on.  Then 
seeing  that  he  was  honest  and  good  as  he  was 


DICK  WHITTINGTON  AND  HIS  CAT.        119 

rich,  he  told  Whittington  that  he  might  have 
his  daughter  in  marriage. 

At  first,  Dick  felt  himself  unworthy  of  Mis- 
tress Alice,  but  he  saw  that  she  looked  kindly 
on  him,  and  he  remembered  how  good  she  had 
been  to  him  from  the  beginning.  So  he  made 
bold  to  ask  Mistress  Alice  to  be  his  wife,  and 
they  had  a  grand  wedding. 

After  the  wedding  was  over,  Mr.  Fitzwarren 
asked  him  what  he  meant  to  do,  and  Mr.  Whit- 
tington said  he  would  like  to  be  a  merchant. 
So  the  two  became  partners,  and  grew  to  be  very 
rich. 

Rich  as  he  was,  this  merchant  never  forgot 
that  he  was  once  poor  Dick  Whittington.  The 
promise  of  Bow  Bells  came  true,  and  three  times 
he  was  chosen  Lord  Mayor  of  London.  He  fed 
the  hungry,  and  cared  for  the  poor. 

When  he  was  Lord  Mayor  of  London  the 
third  time,  it  was  his  duty  to  receive  King  Henry 
V.  and  his  queen  at  Guildhall,  which  was  the 
Mayor's  palace.  It  was  just  after  a  famous  war 
with  France,  which  England  had  won. 

The  King,  at  the  feast,  made  the  lord  mayor 
a  knight,  so  that  now  he  was  Sir  Richard 
Whittington.  There  was  a  very  pleasant  fire 
on  the  hearth  at  the  time.  It  was  made  of 
choice  wood,  and  mace,  and  other  spices  were 
mixed  with  the  wood.  The  king  praised  the  fire, 


120       THE   TRAVELERS  AND   THE  BEAR. 

and  Sir  Richard  said,  —  "I  will  make  it  still 
more  pleasant."  At  that  he  threw  upon  the 
flames  one  piece  of  paper  after  another.  They 
were  the  written  promises  of  the  king,  to  pay 
for  money  lent  to  him  by  London  merchants,, 
when  he  was  carrying  on  the  war.  Sir  Richard 
had  bought  them  for  sixty  thousand  pounds. 
That  was  the  way  he  paid  the  king's  debt,  for 
now  there  was  nothing  to  show  that  the  king 
owed  anything. 

This  is  the  story  of  Dick  Whittington  and  his 
cat.  How  much  is  true,  and  how  much  was 
made  up,  I  do  not  know,  for  what  happened 
took  place  five  hundred  years  ago. 


THE  TRAVELERS  AND  THE  BEAR. 

Two  friends  were  walking  along  the  road, 
when  a  Bear  came  suddenly  upon  them. 

One  of  them  got  first  to  a  tree,  and  climbed 
up  into  it  and  hid  among  the  branches. 

The  other,  who  was  slower,  fell  flat  upon  the 
ground,  and  made  believe  that  he  was  dead. 

When  the  Bear  came  up  to  him,  and  poked 
him  with  his  nose,  he  held  his  breath  ;  for  it  is 
said  that  this  animal  will  not  touch  a  dead  man. 
The  Bear  went  off,  and  the  Man  who  was  in  the 
tree  came  down,  and  asked  the  other  what  the 
Bear  had  whispered. 


THE  LARK  AND  HER  YOUNG  ONES.       121 

"  He  told  me,"  said  the  other,  "  not  to  travel 
hereafter  with  friends  who  would  desert  mf 
when  danger  came." 

This  fable  teaches  that  misfortunes  sometimec 
show  which  of  our  friends  are  true  friends. 


THE  WOLVES  AND  THE  SHEEP. 

THE  Wolves  wanted  to  get  into  a  sheepfold, 
but  the  Dogs  kept  them  out.  So  they  tried  a 
trick.  They  sent  grave  old  fellows  to  the  Sheep, 
who  said  :  "  It  is  the  Dogs  who  make  all  this 
trouble  between  us.  Only  send  them  away,  and 
we  can  live  happily  together."  The  Sheep  knew 
no  better  than  to  send  the  Dogs  away,  and  then 
the  Wolves  came  in,  and  easily  made  an  end  of 
the  Sheep. 

If  you  listen  to  your  enemy,  you  will  get 
yourself  into  trouble. 


THE  LARK  AND  HER  YOUNG  ONES. 

THERE  was  a  brood  of  young  Larks  in  a  field 
of  corn,  which  was  just  ripe,  and  the  mother, 
looking  every  day  for  the  reapers,  left  words 
whenever  she  went  out  in  search  of  food,  that 
her  young  ones  should  tell  her  all  the  news  they 
heard. 

One   day,  when    she  was  absent,  the  master 


122   THE  LARK  AND  HER  YOUNG  ONES. 

came  to  look  at  his  field.  "It  is  full  time," 
said  he,  "  to  call  in  my  neighbors  and  get  my 
corn  reaped."  When  the  old  Lark  came  home, 
the  young  ones  told  their  mother  what  they  had 
heard,  and  begged  her  to  move  them  at  once. 

"Time  enough,"  said  she.  "If  he  trusts  to 
his  neighbors,  he  will  have  to  wait  a  while  yet 
for  his  harvest." 

Next  day,  the  owner  came  again,  and  found 
the  sun  hotter,  the  corn  riper,  and  nothing 
done. 

"  There  is  not  an  hour  to  be  lost,"  said  he. 
"  We  cannot  depend  upon  our  neighbors ;  we 
must  call  in  our  relations."  Turning  to  his  son, 
he  said,  "  Go,  call  your  uncles  and  cousins ;  and 
see  that  they  begin  to-morrow." 

The  young  Larks,  in  great  fear,  told  their 
mother  what  the  Farmer  had  said.  "  If  that  be 
all,"  said  she,  "  do  not  be  frightened,  for  the  rela- 
tions have  harvest  work  of  their  own  ;  but  take 
notice  of  what  you  hear  next  time,  and  be  sure 
to  let  me  know." 

She  went  abroad  the  next  day,  and  the  owner 
coming,  as  before,  and  finding  the  grain  falling 
to  the  ground  because  it  was  over  ripe,  said  to 
his  son,  "  We  must  wait  no  longer  for  our  neigh- 
bors and  friends.  Do  you  go  to-night  and  hire 
some  reapers,  and  we  will  set  to  work  ourselves 
to-morrow." 


BEAUTY  AND   THE  BEAST.  123 

When  the  young  Larks  told  their  mother 
this,  — 

"  Then,"  said  she,  "  it  is  time  for  us  to  be  off ; 
for  when  a  man  takes  up  his  business  himself, 
instead  of  leaving  it  to  others,  you  may  be  sure 
that  he  means  to  set  to  work  in  earnest." 


BEAUTY  AND  THE  BEAST. 
I. 

BEAUTY     AND     HER     SISTERS. 

THERE  was  once  a  rich  merchant  who  had  six 
children,  three  sons  and  three  daughters;  he 
loved  them  more  than  he  loved  all  his  riches,  so 
that  he  was  always  seeking  to  make  them  happy 
and  wise. 

The  daughters  were  very  pretty ;  but  the 
youngest  was  more  than  pretty  —  she  was  beau- 
tiful. As  every  one  called  her  Little  Beauty 
when  she  was  a  child,  and  she  became  more 
lovely  every  year,  the  name  grew  up  with  her, 
so  that  she  had  no  other  than  just  —  Beauty. 

Now  Beauty  was  as  good  as  she  was  beauti- 
ful ;  but  her  elder  sisters  were  ill-natured  and 
jealous  of  her,  and  could  not  bear  to  hear  her 
called  Beauty.  They  were  very  proud,  too,  of 
their  father's  riches,  and  put  on  great  airs. 


124      BEAUTY  AND  THE  BEAST. 

They  would  not  visit  the  daughters  of  other 
merchants,  but  were  always  following  persons 
who  had  titles,  Lady  this  and  Duchess  thatc 
They  laughed  at  Beauty,  who  lived  quietly  at 
home  with  their  father. 

The  father  was  so  rich  that  many  great  mer- 
chants wished  to  marry  his  daughters,  but  the 
two  eldest  always  said  that  they  could  never 
think  of  marrying  anybody  below  a  duke,  or  at 
the  least  an  earl.  As  for  Beauty,  she  thanked 
her  lovers  for  thinking  so  well  of  her,  but  as 
she  was  still  very  young,  she  wished  to  live  a 
few  years  longer  with  her  father. 

Now  it  fell  out  that  the  merchant  all  at  once 
lost  his  great  wealth.  Nothing  was  left  but  one 
small  house  in  the  country,  and  there  the  poor 
man  told  his  children  they  must  now  go,  and 
earn  their  daily  bread. 

The  two  eldest  daughters  said  they  need  not 
go,  for  they  had  plenty  of  lovers  who  would  be 
glad  enough  to  marry  them,  even  though  they 
had  lost  their  fortune.  But  they  were  wrong, 
for  their  lovers  would  not  look  at  them  now,  and 
jeered  at  them  in  their  trouble,  because  they  had 
been  so  proud  before. 

Yet  every  one  felt  sorry  for  Beauty.  Several 
gentlemen  who  loved  her  begged  her  still  to  let 
them  marry  her,  though  she  had  not  a  penny. 
Beauty  refused,  and  said  she  could  not  leave  her 
father  now  that  trouble  had  come  upon  him. 


BEAUTY  AND   THE  BEAST.  125 

So  the  family  went  to  live  in  the  small  house 
in  the  country.  There  the  merchant  and  his 
three  sons  ploughed  and  sowed  the  fields,  and 
worked  hard  all  day.  Beauty  rose  at  foui 
o'clock  every  morning,  put  the  house  in  order, 
and  got  breakfast  for  the  whole  family.  It  was 
very  hard  at  first,  for  no  one  helped  her ;  but 
every  day  it  grew  easier  to  work,  and  Beauty 
grew  stronger  and  rosier.  When  her  work  was 
done,  she  could  read  or  play  on  her  harp,  or  sit 
at  her  spinning-wheel,  singing  as  she  spun. 

As  for  her  two  sisters,  they  were  idle  and  un* 
happy,  and  became  quite  helpless.  They  never 
got  up  till  ten  o'clock,  and  then  they  spent  tha 
day  moping  and  fretting,  because  they  no  longer 
had  fine  clothes  to  wear,  and  could  not  go  to 
fine  parties  to  be  seen.  They  jeered  at  Beauty, 
and  said  that  she  was  nothing  but  a  servant-girl 
after  all,  to  like  that  kind  of  living ;  but  Beauty 
did  not  mind  them,  and  lived  on  cheerfully. 

They  had  been  in  the  country  a  year,  when 
one  morning  the  merchant  had  a  letter.  It 
brought  the  news  that  a  ship  laden  with  rich 
goods  belonging  to  him  had  not  been  lost  after 
all,  and  had  just  come  into  port.  The  two  sis- 
ters were  half  wild  with  joy,  for  now  they  could 
soon  leave  the  farm-house,  and  go  back  to  the 
gay  city. 

When   their  father    was  about  to  go  to  the 


126      BEAUTY  AND  THE  BEAST. 

port  to  settle  his  business  there,  they  begged 
him  to  bring  back  all  manner  of  fine  things  for 
them. 

Then  the  merchant  asked  Beauty  :  — 

"  And  what  shall  I  bring  you  Beauty  ?  "  for 
Beauty  had  yet  asked  nothing. 

"  Why,  since  you  ask  me,  dear  father,  I  should 
like  you  to  bring  me  a  rose,  for  none  grow  in 
these  parts."  Now  Beauty  did  not  care  so  very 
much  for  a  rose,  but  she  did  not  like  to  seem  to 
blame  her  sisters,  or  to  appear  better  than  they, 
by  saying  that  she  did  not  wish  for  anything. 

The  good  man  set  off ;  but  all  was  not  as  he 
had  hoped.  The  ship  had  come  in,  but  there 
was  a  dispute  about  the  cargo.  He  went  to  law, 
and  it  ended  in  his  turning  back  poorer  than 
when  he  left  his  home. 


n. 

THE     BEAST    AT     HOME. 

HE  set  out  to  return  to  the  farm-house. 
When  he  was  within  thirty  miles  of  home,  he 
came  to  a  large  wood  through  which  he  must 
pass.  The  snow  began  to  fall,  and  covered  the 
path.  The  night  closed  in,  and  it  grew  so  dark 
and  so  cold  that  the  poor  man  gave  himself  up 
for  lost.  He  coidd  not  see  the  way,  and  he  was 
faint  with  cold  and  hunger. 


BEAUTY  AND   THE  BEAST.  127 

All  at  once,  he  saw  a  light  at  the  end  of  a 
long  avenue  of  trees.  He  turned  into  the 
avenue,  and  rode  until  he  came  to  the  end  of  it. 
There  he  found  a  great  palace;  the  windows 
were  all  lighted,  and  the  door  stood  open,  but 
he  saw  not  a  soul. 

The  door  of  the  stable  was  also  open,  and  his 
horse  walked  in.  A  crib  full  of  hay  and  oats 
was  there,  and  the  tired  beast  fell  to  eating 
heartily.  The  merchant  left  his  horse  in  the 
stall  and  entered  the  palace.  He  saw  nobody 
and  heard  nobody,  but  a  fire  was  burning  on  the 
hearth,  and  a  table  was  spread  with  choice  food, 
and  set  for  one  person.  He  was  wet  to  the  skin, 
and  went  to  the  fire  to  dry  himself,  saying :  — 

"  I  hope  the  master  of  the  house  or  his  ser- 
vants will  not  blame  me  for  this.  No  doubt 
some  one  will  soon  come." 

He  waited,  but  no  one  came.  The  clock 
struck  eleven.  Then,  faint  for  want  of  food,  he 
went  to  the  table  and  ate  some  meat,  yet  all  the 
time  in  a  great  fright.  But  when  he  was  no 
longer  hungry,  he  began  to  pluck  up  courage, 
and  to  look  about  him. 

The  clock  struck  twelve.  He  left  the  hall, 
and  passed  through  one  room  after  another  until 
he  came  to  one  where  there  was  a  bed.  It  was 
made  ready,  and,  since  he  was  very  tired,  he  lay 
down  and  slept  soundly. 


128      BEAUTY  AND  THE  BEAST. 

The  merchant  did  not  wake  until  ten  o'clock 
the  next  morning.  He  had  placed  his  clothes 
on  a  chair  by  the  side  of  the  bed.  They  had 
been  nearly  ruined  by  the  storm,  and  were  be- 
sides old  and  worn.  Now  he  saw  a  wholly  new 
suit  in  their  place. 

He  began  to  think  he  must  be  in  the  palace 
of  some  fairy,  and  he  was  sure  of  it  when  he 
looked  out  of  the  window.  The  snow  had  gone, 
and  a  lovely  garden  lay  before  him,  full  of 
flowers.  He  dressed  and  went  back  to  the  hall. 
A  table  was  spread  for  breakfast,  and  he  at  once 
sat  down  to  it.  Then  he  went  to  get  his  horse. 
On  the  way  he  passed  some  roses.  He  remem- 
bered Beauty,  and  plucked  a  rose  to  take  home 
with  him. 

As  soon  as  he  had  done  this,  he  heard  a  fright- 
ful roar,  and  saw  a  dreadful  Beast  coming  toward 
him.  He  was  so  frightened  that  he  nearly  fell 
down.  The  Beast  cried  out  in  a  loud  voice  :  — 

"  Ungrateful  man !  I  saved  your  life  by 
letting  you  come  into  my  palace.  I  gave  you 
food  to  eat  and  a  bed  to  rest  in,  and  now  you 
steal  my  roses,  which  I  love  beyond  everything. 
You  shall  pay  for  this  with  your  life ! "  The 
poor  man  threw  himself  on  his  knees  before  the 
Beast,  saying :  — 

"  Forgive  me,  my  lord.  I  did  not  know  I  was 
doing  wrong.  I  only  wanted  to  pluck  a  rose  for 


BEAUTY  AND   THE  BEAST.  129 

o.ne  of  my  daughters.  She  asked  me  to  bring 
one  home  to  her.  I  pray  you,  do  not  kill  me, 
my  lord." 

"  I  am  not  a  lord.  I  am  a  Beast.  I  hate  soft 
words,  and  you  will  not  catch  me  by  any  of  your 
fine  speeches.  You  say  you  have  daughters. 
Well,  I  will  forgive  you,  if  one  of  them  will  come 
and  die  in  your  stead.  But  promise  that,  if  they 
refuse,  you  will  come  back  in  three  months." 

The  merchant  did  not  mean  in  the  least  to 
let  one  of  his  daughters  die  for  him.  But  he 
wished  to  see  his  children  once  more  before  he 
died,  so  he  promised  to  return  if  one  of  his 
daughters  would  not  die  for  him.  The  Beast 
then  told  him  to  go  back  to  the  room  where  he 
had  slept.  There  he  would  find  a  chest.  He 
might  fill  it  with  anything  he  found  in  the 
palace,  and  it  would  be  sent  after  him. 


III. 

BEAUTY  GOES  TO  THE  BEAST. 

THE  merchant  did  as  he  was  bid.  The  floor 
of  the  room  was  covered  with  gold,  and  he  filled 
the  chest.  If  he  must  die,  he  would  at  least 
provide  for  his  children.  Then  he  took  his 
horse  and  rode  out  of  the  wood,  and  came  at  last 
to  his  home.  He  held  the  rose  in  his  hand,  and 


130      BEAUTY  AND  THE  BEAST. 

as  the  daughters  came  out  to  meet  him,  he  gave 
it  to  the  youngest,  saying  :  — 

"  Take  it,  Beauty.  You  little  know  what  it 
has  cost  your  poor  father ;  "  and  then  he  told  all 
that  had  happened  since  he  left  home. 

The  two  eldest  daughters  began  to  cry  aloud, 
and  to  blame  Beauty.  Why  did  she  ask  for 
roses?  Why  did  she  not  ask  for  dresses,  as 
they  did ;  then  all  would  have  gone  well.  Now 
the  hard-hearted  thing,  they  said,  did  not  shed  a 
tear.  Beauty  replied  quietly  that  it  was  of  little 
use  to  weep.  She  meant  to  go  and  die  in  her 
father's  stead. 

"  No,  no !  "  cried  the  three  brothers.  "  We 
will  go  and  seek  this  Beast,  and  either  he  or  we 
must  die ! " 

"  It  is  all  in  vain,"  said  the  father.  "  You  do 
not  know  the  Beast.  He  is  more  mighty  than 
you  can  think.  No  !  you  must  stay  and  care  for 
your  sisters.  At  the  end  of  three  months  I  shall 
go  back  and  die."  The  merchant  then  went  to 
his  room,  and  there  he  found  the  chest  of  gold. 

He  was  greatly  amazed.  He  had  forgotten 
the  promise  of  the  Beast.  But  he  said  nothing 
about  the  chest  to  his  daughters.  He  was  sure 
they  would  tease  him  to  go  back  to  town  to  live. 

Beauty  said  little,  but  when  the  three  months 
were  over,  she  made  ready  to  go  with  her  father. 
The  brothers  and  sisters  bade  them  good-by, 


BEAUTY  AND   THE  BEAST.  131 

and  wept  over  Beauty.  The  brothers  wept  real 
tears,  but  the  sisters  rubbed  their  eyes  with 
onions,  so  as  to  make  tears ;  they  did  not  really 
care. 

The  horse  took  the  right  road,  as  if  he  knew 
the  way,  and  when  he  came  to  the  palace,  he 
went  at  once  to  the  stable.  The  merchant  and 
Beauty  entered  the  palace.  They  found  the 
table  spread  for  two  persons,  and  they  sat  down 
to  it. 

After  supper  there  was  a  great  roar  as  before, 
and  the  Beast  entered.  Beauty  trembled,  and 
the  Beast  turned  to  her  and  said :  — 

"  Did  you  come  of  your  own  self  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  said  Beauty,  still  trembling. 

"  Then  I  thank  you.  But  you,  sir,"  and  he 
turned  to  the  father,  "  get  you  gone  to-morrow, 
and  never  let  me  see  your  face  again.  Good- 
night, Beauty." 

"  Good-night,  Beast,"  she  replied,  and  Beast 
walked  off.  The  merchant  begged  and  begged 
his  daughter  to  leave  him,  and  to  go  back  to  her 
home.  But  she  was  firm,  and  when  the  morning 
came,  she  made  him  leave  her. 

"  Surely,"  he  thought,  "  Beast  will  not  hurt 
Beauty." 

Beauty  wept,  but  she  was  a  brave  girl,  and 
soon  she  dried  her  eyes,  and  began  to  walk 
through  the  palace.  She  came  to  a  door  and 


132      BEAUTY  AND  THE  BEAST. 

over  it  was  written  BEAUTY'S  ROOM.  She 
opened  the  door,  and  found  herself  in  a  fine 
chamber,  with  books,  music  and  a  harp,  and 
many  beautiful  things. 

"  It  cannot  be  that  I  have  only  a  day  to  live," 
she  said,  "  for  why  should  all  this  be  done  for 
me  ?  "  She  opened  a  book  and  saw  written  in 
letters  of  gold :  Your  wishes  and  commands 
shall  be  obeyed.  You  are  here  the  queen  over 
everything. 

"  Alas !  "  she  thought,  « I  wish  most  of  aU  I 
could  see  my  father  and  know  what  he  is  doing." 
Just  then  her  eyes  fell  on  a  large  looking-glass, 
and  in  it  she  saw  her  father  just  reaching  home. 
Her  sisters  came  out  to  meet  him.  They  tried 
to  look  sad,  but  it  was  plain  that  they  were  not 
sorry  to  see  him  come  home  alone. 

The  sight  in  the  glass  was  only  for  a  moment ; 
then  it  faded,  and  Beauty  turned  away  and  in 
her  mind  thanked  Beast  for  what  he  had  done. 

At  noon  she  found  dinner  ready  for  her,  and 
sweet  music  sounded  as  she  ate.  But  she  saw 
nobody.  At  night  Beast  came  and  asked  leave 
to  sup  with  her.  Of  course  she  could  not  say 
no,  but  she  sat  in  a  fright  all  through  supper. 
He  did  not  speak  for  some  time.  Then  he 


"  Beauty  do  you  think  me  very  ugly  ?  " 

"  Yes,  Beast ;  I  cannot  tell  a  lie.     But  1  think 


BEAUTY  AND   THE  BEAST.  133 

you  are  very  good."  Nothing  more  was  said, 
and  Beauty  was  beginning  to  be  rid  of  her  fear, 
when  all  at  once  he  asked  :  — 

"  Beauty,  will  you  marry  me  ?  "  Beauty  was 
in  a  fright  again,  but  she  answered :  — 

"  No,  Beast."  He  gave  a  great  sigh  which 
shook  the  house.  Then  he  got  up  from  the 
table  and  said  :  — 

"  Good  -  night,  Beauty,"  and  went  away. 
Beauty  was  glad  he  had  gone,  but  she  could  not 
help  pitying  him. 

IV. 

THE     CHARM  IS  BROKEN. 

BEAUTY  lived  in  this  way  three  months.  The 
Beast  came  to  supper  every  night.  He  did  not 
grow  less  ugly,  but  Beauty  did  not  mind  his 
ugliness  so  much,  for  she  saw  how  kind  he  really 
was.  But  there  was  one  sore  trouble.  Every 
night  the  Beast  was  sure  to  ask  :  — 

"  Will  you  marry  me,  Beauty  ?  "  and  Beauty 
always  answered  :  — 

"  No,  Beast." 

But  one  night  he  begged  her  at  least  never  to 
leave  him.  Now  it  chanced  on  that  very  day 
Beauty  had  looked  in  her  glass.  There  she  saw 
her  father  sick  with  grief,  for  he  thought  his 


134      BEAUTY  AND  THE  BEAST. 

child  was  dead.  Her  sisters  were  married.  Her 
brothers  were  soldiers.  So  she  told  all  this  to 
the  Beast,  and  wept  and  said  she  should  die  if 
she  could  not  see  her  father  once  more. 

"  Do  not  refuse  to  let  me  go  !  "  she  begged. 

"  No,"  said  the  Beast.  "  I  will  not  refuse  you. 
I  would  much  rather  your  poor  Beast  should  die 
of  grief  for  your  absence.  So  you  may  go." 

"Oh,  thank  you  dear  Beast,"  said  Beauty, 
"  and  I  will  surely  come  back  in  a  week." 

"  When  you  wish  to  come  back,  Beauty,  lay 
your  ring  on  the  table  before  you  go  to  bed, 
and  you  will  find  yourself  here  when  you  wake. 
Good-night,  Beauty." 

"  Good-night,  Beast." 

The  next  morning  Beauty  woke  to  find  herself 
at  the  farm-house.  Her  father  was  so  glad  to 
see  her  once  more,  and  to  know  she  was  alive 
and  well,  that  his  sickness  left  him  at  once.  He 
sent  for  her  sisters,  who  came  and  brought  their 
husbands. 

These  husbands  were  not  much  to  be  praised. 
One  was  so  vain  that  he  looked  at  himself,  and 
seldom  looked  at  his  wife.  The  other  had  a  sharp 
tongue,  and  liked  to  use  it  on  other  people,  and 
most  of  all  on  his  own  wife.  So  the  sisters  were 
no  happier  than  they  had  been. 

But  they  were  still  jealous  of  Beauty,  and 
they  laid  a  plan  for  her  hurt.  They  thought  if 


BEAUTY  AND   THE  BEAST.  135 

they  could  keep  her  at  home  after  the  week  was 
over,  the  Beast  would  be  so  angry,  he  would 
soon  make  an  end  of  her.  So,  at  the  end  of  the 
week,  they  made  a  great  ado,  and  begged  her  to 
stay  just  a  little  longer.  Beauty  could  not  help 
being  glad  to  have  her  sisters  want  her.  She 
said  she  would  stay  one  week  more ;  but  she  was 
not  quite  easy  in  her  mind. 

On  the  night  of  the  tenth  day  the  sisters  gave 
her  a  feast,  in  order  to  make  her  forget  the  Beast. 
But  at  night  Beauty  dreamed  she  saw  poor  Beast 
lying  half  dead  on  the  grass  in  the  palace  garden. 
She  woke  in  tears,  and  at  once  laid  her  ring  on 
the  table,  and  then  went  to  sleep  again. 

When  she  awoke,  she  was  once  more  in  her 
room  at  the  palace.  All  day  she  wished  for 
supper  time  to  come.  Then  she  would  see  Beast 
again.  But  supper  time  came,  and  no  Beast  was 
at  the  table.  Nine  o'clock  struck,  and  still 
Beast  did  not  come. 

Beauty  flew  into  the  garden.  She  went  to 
the  spot  she  had  dreamed  of,  and  there  lay  poor 
Beast  on  the  grass.  She  felt  his  heart  beat. 
He  was  still  alive.  She  ran  for  some  water  and 
threw  it  on  his  face.  The  Beast  opened  his  eyes 
and  said  in  a  faint  voice  :  — 

"  You  forgot  your  promise.  I  could  not  live 
without  you,  and  I  meant  to  starve  to  death. 
Now  you  have  come,  and  I  shall  die  happy." 


136      BEAUTY  AND  THE  BEAST. 

"  No !  you  shall  not  die,  dear  Beast,"  cried 
Beauty.  "  You  shall  live  to  be  my  husband, 
for  now  I  feel  I  really  love  you." 

At  these  words  the  whole  palace  was  ablaze 
with  light.  Music  sounded,  and  there  was  a 
stir  all  about.  There  was  no  Beast,  but  in  his 
place  a  very  handsome  prince  was  at  Beauty's 
feet. 

"  You  have  broken  the  charm  that  held  me," 
he  said. 

"  But  where  is  my  poor  Beast  ?  "  asked 
Beauty,  weeping.  "  I  want  my  dear  Beast." 

"  I  was  the  Beast,"  said  the  Prince.  "  A 
wicked  fairy  had  power  to  make  me  live  in  that 
ugly  form,  till  some  good  and  beautiful  maid 
should  be  found,  so  good  as  to  love  me  in  spite 
of  my  ugliness." 

Beauty  was  amazed,  but  she  took  the  Prince's 
hand  and  they  went  into  the  palace.  The  peo- 
ple of  the  country  were  full  of  joy.  They  had 
mourned  for  their  Prince,  and  now  he  had  sud- 
denly come  back  again,  and  with  him  was  a 
beautiful  princess.  So  Beauty  and  the  Beast, 
who  was  no  longer  a  Beast,  reigned  happily  in 
the  kingdom. 


THE:  TRAVELER  AND  THE  VIPER.     137 

THE  LION  IN   LOVE. 

A  LION  once  fell  in  love  with  a  Woodman's 
daughter,  and  wished  to  marry  her.  So  he 
went  to  the  father,  and  begged  him  to  give  him 
the  maid. 

The  Woodman  said  he  could  not  think  of 
marrying  his  daughter  to  a  Lion.  At  that  the 
Lion  began  to  roar  terribly.  The  Woodman 
was  in  great  fright,  but  thought  of  a  way  out 
of  the  danger. 

"  Lion,"  said  he,  "  I  will  give  you  my  daugh- 
ter, if  you  will  first  have  your  nails  and  your 
teeth  drawn ;  for  it  is  these  that  frighten  her." 

The  Lion  was  so  madly  in  love  that  he  went 
at  once  and  had  his  nails  and  his  teeth  drawn  ; 
but  now,  when  he  came  back  for  the  maid,  the 
Woodman  had  no  more  fear  of  him,  and  drove 
him  away  with  jeers. 

THE  TRAVELER  AND  THE  VIPER. 

A  MAN,  going  along  the  road  in  winter,  saw  a 
Viper  stiff  with  cold ;  he  had  pity  on  him,  and 
took  him  up,  and  placed  him  in  his  bosom  to 
warm  him  back  into  life. 

Now  the  Viper,  as  long  as  he  was  cold,  lay 
quiet ;  but  as  soon  as  he  was  well  warmed,  he 
drove  his  fangs  into  the  man's  breast. 


138  THE  WOLF  AND   THE  LAMB. 

As  the  man  lay  dying,  he  said  :  — 
"  I  suffer  justly ;  for  why  should  I  have  taken 
care  of  the  dying  Viper,  when  I  ought  to  have 
killed  him,  if  he  had  been  in  the  best  of  health?" 


THE  WOLF  AND  THE  LAMB. 

A  WOLF  saw  a  Lamb  drinking  at  a  brook, 
and  set  about  finding  some  good  reason  for 
catching  him.  So  he  went  to  a  place  a  little 
higher  up  the  brook,  and  called  out :  — 

"  How  dare  you  muddle  the  water  that  I  am 
drinking  ?  " 

"How  can  I,"  said  the  Lamb,  humbly,  "when 
I  drink  with  the  tips  of  my  lips  only  ?  And, 
besides,  the  water  runs  from  you  to  me,  not 
from  me  to  you." 

"  Well,  you  called  my  father  names  a  year 
ago,"  said  the  Wolf,  readily  finding  another  rea- 
son. 

"  I  was  not  born  a  year  ago,"  said  the  poor 
Lamb. 

"  You  may  make  ever  so  good  excuses,"  said 
the  Wolf,  finally;  "I  shall  eat  you  all  the 
same." 

This  fable  teaches  that,  when  one  has  made 
up  his  mind  to  do  wrong,  he  is  not  stopped  by 
the  best  of  reasons. 


THE    TORTOISE  AND   THE  EAGLE.         139 
THE  TRAVELERS  AND  THE  AXE. 

Two  men  were  traveling1  along  the  same  road, 
when  one  of  them  found  an  axe.  At  that  the 
other,  who  had  not  found  it,  begged  him  not  to 
say  "  I  found  the  axe,"  but  "  We  found  the 
axe." 

By  and  by  the  people  who  had  lost  the  axe 
met  them,  and  the  one  who  had  found  it  was  set 
upon  by  them.  As  he  tried  to  escape,  he  cried 
out :  "  We  are  undone  !  " 

But  his  fellow-traveler  answered  :  — 

"  Do  not  say  ( We  are  undone,'  but  '  I  am  un- 
done ; '  for  when  you  found  the  axe,  you  said  '  I 
found  the  axe,'  not  (  We  found  the  axe.'  " 

Those  who  do  not  share  their  good  fortune 
with  others  will  find  none  to  share  their  ill  for- 
tune. 

THE  TORTOISE  AND  THE  EAGLE. 

A  TORTOISE,  seeing  an  Eagle  in  flight,  wanted 
much  to  fly  like  him.  So  she  asked  him  if  he 
would  not  teach  her  to  fly. 

He  told  her  that  it  was  impossible ;  that  Tor- 
toises could  not  fly.  All  the  more  did  she  urge 
him,  so  at  last  the  Eagle  seized  her  in  his  claws, 
bore  her  to  a  great  height,  and  then,  letting  her 
go,  bade  her  fly. 


140  THE    WHITE   CAT. 

She  fell  like  a  stone  to  the  earth,  and  the 
blow  knocked  the  breath  out  of  her  body. 

This  fable  teaches  that  men  who  are  envious, 
and  refuse  to  take  the  advice  of  those  who  know 
more  than  themselves,  are  apt  to  get  into  troublec 


THE  WHITE  CAT. 
I. 

THE    PALACE    OF    THE    WHITE    CAT. 

A  KING  had  three  sons,  handsome,  brave,  and 
generous.  Some  persons  about  the  court,  how- 
ever, made  him  believe  that  these  sons  of  his 
were  eager  to  have  him  die  or  leave  the  throne, 
because  they  each  wanted  to  be  king.  This 
was  not  at  all  true,  but  the  King  believed  it, 
and  made  a  plan  to  get  them  out  of  the  way. 
He  sent  for  them  and  said :  — 

"My  dear  sons,  you  must  see  that  I  am 
growing  old,  and  cannot  attend  to  state  affairs 
as  I  once  used  to.  It  is  right  that  I  should 
make  one  of  you  king  in  my  stead ;  but  first  I 
should  like  something  to  amuse  me  when  I  am 
no  longer  king.  I  think  I  should  like  best  a 
little  dog.  Now,  the  one  of  you  who  brings  me 
the  most  perfect  little  dog  shall  be  king  in  my 


THE   WHITE  CAT.  141 

The  princes  were  much  surprised  at  the  fancy 
of  their  father  to  have  a  little  dog,  but  they  all 
agreed  to  do  as  he  had  asked.  They  bade  him 
good-by,  and  promised  to  come  back  in  a  year. 
They  went  off  together  to  an  old  palace  three 
miles  away.  There  they  had  something  to  eat, 
and  then  set  off  on  separate  roads.  But  they 
agreed  to  meet  again  at  the  palace  at  the  end  of 
the  year. 

Now,  we  will  see  what  happened  to  the  young- 
est of  the  three  brothers.  He  went  from  town 
to  town  looking  for  handsome  dogs.  He  bought 
one,  and  then,  when  he  found  a  handsomer  dog, 
he  bought  that  and  gave  the  other  away.  He 
could  not  keep  all  the  dogs.  Twenty  servants 
would  not  have  been  enough  to  carry  them 
about,  and  take  care  of  them.  He  kept  only 
the  handsomest  one. 

At  last  he  found  himself  in  a  wood.  Night 
came  on,  and  it  began  to  rain.  There  were 
thunder  and  lightning,  and  he  lost  his  way.  He 
groped  about  and  saw  a  light  in  the  distance. 
He  went  toward  it,  and  soon  was  in  front  of  a 
fine  palace. 

The  door  to  the  palace  was  of  gold,  studded 
with  sapphires,  and  these  shone  with  a  bright 
light.  This  was  the  light  the  Prince  had  seen. 
The  walls  of  the  palace  were  of  fine  china,  and 
there  were  wonderful  paintings  upon  them. 


142  THE    WHITE   CAT. 

These  paintings  showed  the  adventures  of  all  the 
fairies  from  the  beginning  of  the  world. 

The  Prince  saw  a  deer's  foot  hanging  by  the 
side  of  the  door.  It  was  hung  at  the  end  of  a 
chain  of  diamonds,  and  was  plainly  a  bell-pulL 
He  was  greatly  astonished,  for  he  saw  no  one, 
and  he  wondered  that  thieves  had  not  long  ago 
stolen  the  diamonds  and  the  sapphires. 

He  pulled  the  deer's  foot  and  heard  a  bell 
ring.  Soon  the  golden  door  opened.  He  saw 
nobody,  but  he  saw  twelve  Hands  in  the  air, 
each  holding  a  torch.  He  looked  and  did  not 
know  what  to  do.  Then  he  felt  himself  gently 
pushed  from  behind,  so  he  walked  on  into  the 
palace.  There  he  heard  a  voice  singing  :  — 

"  Welcome  Prince,  no  danger  fear, 
Mirth  and  love  attend  you  here." 

The  Hands  with  the  torches  led  him  through 
one  door  after  another,  into  one  room  after 
another.  Each  room  was  more  splendid  than 
the  last.  Finally  the  Hands  drew  a  chair  near 
a  fire,  and  beckoned  him  to  sit  down. 

The  Hands  he  saw  were  white  and  fair.  They 
took  away  his  wet  clothes,  and  brought  him  new 
fine  linen,  and  a  warm  wrapper  in  which  he  sat 
before  the  fire.  Then  they  placed  before  him  a 
glass  upon  a  stand,  and  began  to  comb  and 
brush  his  hair  gently.  They  brought  a  bowl 
with  perfumed  water  in  it,  and  washed  his  face 
and  hands. 


THE   WHITE   CAT.  143 

Now  the  Prince  was  fresh  and  warm,  and  the 
Hands  gave  him  a  princely  suit  of  clothes. 
When  he  was  dressed,  they  led  him  out  of  the 
chamber  to  a  grand  hall.  Here  a  table  was  set 
with  rich  and  dainty  food.  Two  plates  were  on 
the  table,  and  the  Prince  wondered  who  was  to 
eat  with  him. 

II. 

A     YEAR     OF     SPOET. 

JUST  then  he  looked  up  and  saw  a  small  figure 
coming  toward  him.  It  was  covered  with  a  long 
black  veil,  and  was  not  more  than  a  foot  high. 
On  each  side  walked  a  cat  dressed  in  black,  and 
behind  came  a  great  number  of  cats,  some  carry- 
ing cages  full  of  rats,  and  others  mouse-traps 
filled  with  mice. 

The  Prince  did  not  know  what  to  think.  The 
little  figure  drew  near,  and  drew  aside  her  veil. 
It  was  a  cat,  a  beautiful  White  Cat,  but  looking 
sad  and  gentle.  She  said  to  the  Prince  :  — 

"  You  are  welcome,  Prince.  It  makes  me 
glad  to  have  you  come." 

"  Madam,"  said  the  Prince,  "  I  thank  you  for 
all  your  goodness  to  me.  I  cannot  help  think- 
ing you  must  be  a  wonderful  being,  to  have  this 
beautiful  palace,  to  be  able  to  speak,  and  yet  — 
to  be  a  cat !  " 


144  THE    WHITE   CAT. 

"  That  is  true,"  said  the  Cat,  "  but  I  do  not 
like  to  talk,  and  I  do  not  like  to  hear  fine  things 
said  to  me.  Let  us  sit  down  to  supper." 

The  Hands  then  placed  some  dishes  on  the  ta- 
ble, in  front  of  the  Prince  and  the  White  Cat. 
The  Prince  had  a  pie  made  of  young  pigeons, 
but  the  White  Cat  had  one  made  of  fat  mice. 
The  Prince  at  first  did  not  like  to  touch  his 
food.  He  was  not  quite  sure  what  it  was,  but 
the  White  Cat  told  him  not  to  be  afraid.  The 
dishes  before  him  had  no  bit  of  rat  or  mouse  in 
them. 

When  supper  was  over,  the  Prince  noticed 
that  the  White  Cat  carried  a  little  picture  hung 
by  a  cord  upon  one  of  her  feet.  He  asked  to 
look  at  it.  It  was  a  portrait  of  a  young  man. 
To  his  great  surprise,  it  was  his  own  likeness. 

He  did  not  ask  the  White  Cat  to  explain  this, 
for  she  had  a  look  which  forbade  him.  They 
talked  together  about  many  things,  and  then  the 
White  Cat  bade  the  Prince  good-night.  The 
Hands,  with  torches,  led  him  to  his  chamber, 
and  there  he  slept. 

He  was  waked  in  the  morning  by  a  noise  out- 
side. He  got  up,  and  the  Hands  brought  him  a 
handsome  hunting-jacket.  The  noise  kept  on, 
and  he  looked  out  of  the  window.  There  he 
saw  more  than  five  hundred  cats  in  the  open 
space  before  the  palace.  They  were  making 
ready  for  a  hunt. 


THE    WHITE   CAT.  145 

The  White  Cat  soon  came  and  asked  him  to 
join  their  sport,  and  he  was  given  a  wooden- 
horse  to  ride  on.  The  White  Cat  mounted  a 
monkey.  She  wore  a  dragoon's  cap,  which  made 
her  look  very  bold  and  fierce. 

The  horns  sounded,  and  away  they  went. 
The  cats  ran  faster  than  the  hares  and  rabbits, 
and  when  they  caught  any  they  brought  them  to 
the  Prince  and  the  White  Cat.  They  chased 
birds  as  well  as  rabbits.  Up  the  trees  they 
went,  and  the  White  Cat  on  the  monkey  climbed 
more  quickly  than  any,  and  mounted  the  highest 
trees,  to  the  eagle's  nest. 

When  the  chase  was  over,  they  all  went  back 
to  the  palace.  The  White  Cat  sat  down  at  the 
table  with  the  Prince,  and  they  had  a  fine  supper. 
Again  the  Hands  led  the  Prince  to  his  chamber, 
and  he  slept  soundly. 

So  it  went  on  day  after  day.  Every  day  there 
was  some  new  pleasure,  and  the  White  Cat  was 
so  gentle,  so  sweet,  and  so  thoughtful,  that  the 
Prince  could  not  bear  to  think  of  leaving  the 
palace. 

"  How  can  I  go  away  from  you?  "  he  cried 
one  day.  "  Can  you  not  make  me  a  cat  to  live 
here  always  ?  or,  can  you  not  make  yourself  a 
lady  ?  "  But  the  White  Cat  only  smiled,  and 
made  no  answer. 

At  last  a  year  had  almost  gone.     The  White 


146  THE    WHITE   CAT. 

Cat  knew  what  day  the  Prince  must  return  to 
his  father,  and  told  him  that  he  had  but  three 
days  left. 

«  Alas  !  "  said  the  Prince.  "  What  shall  I 
do  ?  I  have  not  yet  found  a  dog  small  enough." 

"  Never  fear,"  said  the  White  Cat.  "  I  will 
see  that  you  have  a  dog,  and  I  will  also  give 
you  a  wooden-horse,  so  that  you  can  ride  home 
in  a  few  hours." 

When  the  day  came,  the  White  Cat  gave  the 
Prince  an  acorn,  and  told  him  to  put  it  close  to 
his  ear.  He  did  so,  and  could  hear  a  little  dog 
barking  inside  the  acorn.  He  was  delighted, 
and  thanked  the  White  Cat  a  thousand  times. 


III. 

THE    LITTLE    DOG    AND    THE    CAMBRIC. 

The  Prince  mounted  his  wooden  horse,  and 
soon  was  at  the  place  where  he  was  to  meet  his 
brothers.  The  two  eldest  told  their  stories. 
The  youngest  kept  silence,  and  showed  only  a 
cheap  cur.  The  brothers  trod  on  each  other's 
toes  under  the  table,  as  much  as  to  say,  "  We 
have  nothing  to  fear  from  this  dog." 

The  next  day  they  all  went  to  the  palace. 
The  dogs  of  the  two  elder  brothers  were 
brought  in  on  soft  rugs;  they  were  wrapped 


THE    WHITE  CAT.  147 

about  in  silk  quilts,  and  it  was  hard  to  see  any- 
thing of  them.  However,  the  King  looked  at 
each,  and  could  not  make  up  his  mind  which 
was  the  smaller  and  prettier.  So  the  two 
princes  began  to  quarrel. 

At  this  the  youngest  son  came  forward.  No- 
body had  looked  at  his  cur,  but  now  he  showed 
them  his  acorn.  He  broke  the  shell,  and  out 
jumped  a  little  dog.  He  held  his  finger  ring, 
and  the  dog  leaped  through  it.  There  was  no 
doubt  now  who  had  the  smaUest  and  prettiest 
dog. 

The  King  could  not  possibly  find  any  fault 
with  the  dog,  but  he  could  not  bear  to  give  up 
his  crown  yet.  So  he  thanked  his  sons  for  their 
trouble,  and  asked  them  to  try  once  more.  He 
wished  them  .to  be  gone  a  year,  and  at  the  end 
of  that  time  to  bring  him  a  fine  piece  of  cam- 
bric. It  must  be  fine  enough  to  be  drawn 
through  the  eye  of  a  small  needle. 

The  three  princes  thought  this  very  hard,  but 
they  set  off  as  before.  The  two  eldest  took  dif- 
ferent roads.  The  youngest  mounted  his  wooden- 
horse,  and  quickly  came  to  the  palace  of  the 
White  Cat.  There  he  was  received  with  great 
joy.  The  Hands  helped  him  to  dismount,  and 
the  table  was  spread  before  him.  The  best 
food  was  given  him,  and  the  White  Cat  sat  op 
posite.  He  told  her  what  a  hard  task  his  fatlier 
had  set. 


148  THE   WHITE  CAT. 

"Do  not  be  troubled,"  she  said.  "I  have 
cats  in  my  palace  who  can  make  just  such  cam- 
bric. So  be  at  ease  and  enjoy  yourself." 

The  Prince  knew  how  to  enjoy  himself.  He 
talked  with  the  White  Cat  about  all  sorts  of 
things,  and  they  hunted  together.  And  when 
he  was  alone,  why,  he  could  think  about  the 
White  Cat,  and  what  she  said  last.  Oh  yes,  he 
knew  how  to  enjoy  himself. 

Thus  another  year  went  by.  At  the  end  of 
the  year  the  White  Cat  said  to  the  Prince :  — 

"  This  time  you  must  go  in  state." 

Then  he  saw  in  the  yard  a  splendid  carriage, 
covered  with  gold  and  diamonds.  Twelve 
horses  as  white  as  snow  were  harnessed  to  it, 
and  a  troop  of  horsemen  was  ready  to  ride  be- 
hind and  by  the  side  of  the  carriage.  The 
White  Cat  bade  the  Prince  good-by,  and  gave 
him  a  walnut. 

"  In  this  nut,"  she  said,  "  is  the  cambric. 
But  you  must  not  open  the  nut  till  you  come 
before  the  King." 

Away  went  the  horses,  and  carried  the  Prince 
in  a  twinkling  to  the  King's  palace.  His  two 
brothers  were  already  there.  They  all  went  into 
the  King's  presence,  and  the  eldest  brought  out 
his  piece  of  cambric.  No  one  had  ever  seen 
anything  so  fine.  The  King  took  the  needle. 
The  tip  end  of  the  cambric  went  through  the 
eye,  but  the  piece  could  not  be  pulled  further. 


THE    WHITE   CAT.  149 

The  second  son  tried,  but  his  piece  failed  also. 
Then  the  youngest  Prince  came  forward  with  an 
elegant  box,  covered  with  jewels.  He  opened 
the  box  and  took  out  the  walnut.  He  smiled, 
and  looked  about,  and  cracked  the  shell.  Then 
he  looked  sober.  There  was  no  cambric  here, 
only  a  filbert. 

However,  he  cracked  the  shell  of  the  filbert. 
Out  came  a  cherry-stone.  He  looked  more  se- 
rious still.  The  brothers  and  the  lords  of  the 
court  began  to  laugh.  What  could  be  more 
silly  than  this  Prince  with  his  cherry-stone  ! 

The  Prince  now  cracked  the  cherry-stone,  and 
took  out  the  kernel.  He  split  it,  and  found  a 
grain  of  wheat;  he  opened  the  grain  of  wheat, 
and  there  was  a  grain  of  millet-seed.  All  the 
court  was  now  laughing.  The  Prince  grew  red 
in  the  face  and  muttered  :  — 

"  0  White  Cat,  White  Cat,  you  have  deceived 
me." 

When  he  said  this  he  felt  a  scratch  on  his 
arm.  He  saw  nothing,  but  it  was  just  as  if  a 
cat  scratched  him.  That  brought  him  to  his 
senses.  He  opened  the  millet-seed  very  care- 
fully, and  drew  forth  a  piece  of  cambric.  It 
was  four  hundred  yards  long,  and  was  so  fine 
that  it  was  easily  drawn  through  the  eye  of  the 
needle. 

The  King  could  ask  nothing  more.     But  he 


150  THE    WHITE   CAT. 

was  not  ready  to  give  up  his  crown,  so  he  said 
to  his  sons  :  — 

-"You  have  done  nobly.  Now  one  of  you 
must  be  king.  But  it  will  not  do  for  one  to  be 
king  without  a  queen.  So  go  away  and  find  the 
most  beautiful  woman  in  the  world.  At  the 
end  of  the  year  come  back.  The  one  who 
brings  the  most  beautiful  woman  shall  marry 
her  and  have  my  kingdom." 


IV. 

THE    WHITE     CAT    HAS     HER    HEAD     CUT    OFF. 

THE  three  brothers  set  off  again  on  their 
travels,  and  the  youngest  rode  straight  to  the 
palace  of  the  White  Cat.  He  could  not  bear  to 
speak  or  think  of  his  errand.  He  was  so  happy, 
however,  with  the  White  Cat  that  he  quite  for- 
got everything  for  another  year.  At  the  end  of 
that  time,  the  White  Cat  herself  reminded  him 
what  he  had  to  do. 

"  You  must  now  go  back  to  your  father,  but 
you  shall  take  with  you  a  beautiful  princess. 
Cut  off  my  head  and  my  tail,  and  throw  them 
into  the  fire." 

"  I !  "  said  the  Prince.  "  I  cut  off  your  head 
and  tail !  How  can  I,  when  I  love  you  so  ?  " 

"  You  must.  That  is  the  way  to  prove  your 
love.  If  you  love  me,  do  as  I  bid  you." 


THE    WHITE   CAT.  151 

The  Prince  looked  at  the  White  Cat.  Her 
eyes  said  the  same  thing  to  him.  He  took  his 
sword,  and  did  as  she  bade  him.  No  sooner 
had  he  done  this  than  the  White  Cat  was  gone, 
and  a  beautiful  princess  stood  before  him.  At 
the  same  moment  the  room  was  full  of  maids 
and  gentlemen.  All  the  cats  were  gone.  The 
Prince  was  astonished.  The  beautiful  princess 
sent  away  all  the  people,  and  then  told  the 
story  of  her  life  to  the  Prince. 

V. 

THE     WHITE     OAT'S     STORY. 

"Do  not  think  I  have  always  been  a  cat. 
My  father  was  a  king,  and  had  six  kingdoms. 
He  loved  my  mother  dearly,  and  let  her  do  just 
as  she  wished.  She  liked  best  to  travel  and  to 
see  new  sights.  One  day  she  heard  of  a  distant 
country  where  the  fairies  had  a  garden,  and  in 
this  garden  was  the  most  delicious  fruit  ever 
eaten. 

"  She  wished  at  once  to  taste  this  fruit,  and 
so  she  set  off  for  the  country.  She  came  to  a 
noble  palace  and  knocked  at  the  gate.  No  one 
came  out.  She  waited.  No  one  appeared  any- 
where in  sight.  But  over  the  garden  wall  she 
saw  the  fruit. 


152  THE    WHITE   CAT. 

"  My  mother  bade  her  servants  pitch  her  tent 
close  by  the  gate.  There  she  stayed  six  weeks. 
Yet  she  saw  no  one  go  in  or  out.  She  was  so 
vexed  and  so  disappointed  that  at  the  end  of 
six  weeks  she  fell  sick. 

"  One  night,  when  she  was  almost  dead,  she 
opened  her  eyes  and  saw  an  old  woman,  small 
and  ugly.  It  was  one  of  the  fairies  who  owned 
the  garden.  This  old  woman  was  sitting  in  a 
chair  by  the  bed,  and  spoke  to  my  mother. 

"  '  Why  do  you  come  here  for  our  fruit  ? ' 
she  asked.  '  My  sisters  and  I  do  not  like  it  at 
all.  We  did  not  mean  you  should  have  any. 
But  now  you  are  very  ill,  and  we  do  not  want 
you  to  die  here,  you  may  have  all  you  want,  if 
you  will  give  us  what  we  ask  and  then  go  away.' 

" '  Oh,'  said  my  mother,  '  I  will  give  you 
everything  I  have,  to  the  half  of  my  kingdom, 
if  you  will  only  give  me  the  fruit.' 

" '  Very  well.  You  will  have  a  child.  When 
the  child  is  born,  give  her  to  us.  We  will  take 
care  of  her,  and  she  shall  be  a  beautiful  prin- 


"  *  That  is  pretty  hard,'  said  my  mother,  '  but 
I  must  have  the  fruit,  or  I  shall  die.  So  the 
child  shall  be  yours.' 

"  Then  my  mother  rose  and  dressed,  and 
went  into  the  garden.  Here  she  ate  her  fill. 
Besides,  she  ordered  four  thousand  mules  to  be 


THE    WHITE   CAT.  153 

loaded  with  the  fruit,  for  it  was  of  a  kind  that 
would  never  spoil.  Thus  she  traveled  back  to 
my  father.  He  was  overjoyed  to  see  her,  and 
she  said  nothing  of  the  promise  she  had  given. 

"  By  and  by,  however,  she  grew  sad,  and  my 
father  asked  her  what  troubled  her.  Then  she 
told  him  the  whole  story.  At  first  he  was 
greatly  troubled,  but  he  began  to  think  how  he 
should  prevent  the  fairies  from  getting  his  child. 

"  As  soon  as  I  was  born  he  had  me  taken  to 
the  top  of  a  high  tower.  There  were  twenty 
flights  of  stairs  leading  up  to  the  room  in  which 
I  was  placed.  A  door  was  at  the  foot  of  each 
flight,  and  was  locked,  and  my  father  kept  the 
key.  He  did  not  mean  that  any  one  should  get 
at  me. 

"  When  the  fairies  heard  of  this,  they  were 
very  angry.  They  sent  forth  a  great  dragon, 
and  the  dragon  breathed  forth  fire,  and  burnt 
up  the  grass  and  trees.  It  was  very  fierce,  too, 
and  killed  men,  women,  and  children.  So  my 
father  was  filled  with  dismay,  and  sent  word 
that  the  fairies  should  have  me." 


154  THE    WHITE  CAT. 

VI. 

THE     WHITE     OAT'S    STORY    ENDED. 

"  I  was  placed  in  a  cradle  of  mother-of-pearl, 
and  carried  to  the  palace  by  the  garden,  where 
my  mother  had  eaten  the  fruit.  The  dragon 
at  once  disappeared,  and  all  went  well  in  my 
father's  kingdom. 

"  The  fairies  gave  me  a  room  in  a  tower,  and 
I  had  everything  I  could  ask.  Here  I  grew  up. 
I  knew  nothing  of  my  father  or  mother.  The 
fairies  came  to  see  me,  but  they  rode  the  dragon, 
and  flew  in  at  the  window.  You  must  know, 
there  was  no  door  to  the  tower.  There  were 
windows,  high  up  from  the  ground,  and  there 
was  a  garden  upon  the  top  of  the  tower. 

"The  fames  were  very  kind  to  me,  and  all 
went  well.  I  played  in  the  garden  on  the  tower, 
and  I  had  my  birds  and  flowers.  But  one  day 
I  was  sitting  at  one  of  the  windows  talking  with 
my  parrot,  when  I  saw  a  fine-looking  man  below. 
He  stood  listening  to  the  parrot  and  me. 

"  I  never  had  seen  a  man  except  in  pictures, 
and  I  was  very  glad  to  see  this  one.  We  spoke 
to  each  other  through  the  window,  and  so  it 
went  on  day  after  day.  At  last  I  thought  I 
could  not  bear  to  live  alone  in  the  tower,  and  I 
planned  to  escape. 


THE    WHITE   CAT.  155 

"  I  begged  the  fairies  to  bring  me  some  cord 
and  needles,  to  make  a  net  with.  There  were 
birds  flying  about,  and  if  I  had  a  net  I  could 
catch  one.  They  gave  me  these  things,  and  I 
made  a  ladder  which  reached  from  my  window 
to  the  ground^ 

"  I  meant  to  climb  down  the  ladder,  but  be- 
fore I  could  do  so  my  lover  had  climbed  up. 
He  leaped  in  at  my  window.  At  first  I  was 
frightened,  but  then  I  was  glad  to  have  him 
with  me.  He  gave  me  a  picture  of  himself,  but 
while  we  were  talking  the  fairy  Violent  flew  in 
at  the  window  on  the  back  of  the  dragon.  She 
was  in  a  great  rage,  and  bade  the  dragon  at 
once  devour  my  lover. 

"  I  tried  to  cast  myself  into  the  mouth  of  the 
dragon,  for  I  no  longer  cared  to  live.  But  the 
fairy  held  me  back,  and  said  she  had  another 
punishment  for  me.  She  touched  me  with  her 
wand,  and  I  became  at  once  a  White  Cat. 

"  She  brought  me  to  this  palace,  and  gave  me 
a  troop  of  cats  to  wait  on  me.  They  were  lords 
and  ladies  who  had  been  turned  into  cats.  The 
Hands  were  the  hands  of  servants  who  could  not 
be  seen.  Here  I  was  to  stay  a  cat  until  a  prince 
should  come  who  looked  exactly  like  my  lover, 
and  who  should  cut  off  my  head  and  my  tail. 

"  My  Prince,  look  at  this  picture.  It  is  your 
exact  image.  You  have  saved  me  from  the  fai- 
ries, and  I  love  you  with  all  my  heart." 


156         THE  JACKDAW  AND   THE  DOVES. 

The  Prince  was  overjoyed.  He  made  haste  to 
set  out  for  his  father's  palace  with  the  beautiful 
princess.  Again  the  brothers  stood  before  the 
King,  each  with  a  beautiful  princess.  The  King 
was  now  at  his  wit's  end,  but  the  princess,  who 
had  lately  been  a  White  Cat,  came  forward  and 
said  :  — 

"  0  King,  it  is  a  thousand  pities  that  you 
should  give  up  your  kingdom.  You  are  not 
old.  You  are  very  wise,  and  ought  to  reign 
many  years.  I  have  six  kingdoms.  Let  me 
give  one  to  each  of  your  two  eldest  sons.  Then 
the  youngest  son  and  T  will  still  have  four  king- 
doms. More  than  all,  you  will  not  have  to  de- 
cide which  of  us  three  princesses  is  the  most 
beautiful." 

Everybody  set  up  a  shout.  The  three  wed- 
dings took  place  at  once,  and  the  kingdoms  were 
divided  between  the  princes. 

THE  JACKDAW  AND  THE  DOVES. 

A  JACKDAW  once  looked  into  a  dove-cote, 
and  saw  the  Doves  well  fed  and  cared  for ;  so 
he  went  away  and  daubed  himself  white,  and 
then  went  back  to  make  himself  one  of  them. 
As  long  as  he  kept  quiet  they  let  him  stay, 
thinking  he  was  a  Dove ;  but  as  soon  as  he 
opened  his  mouth  to  speak  or  sing,  they  found 


THE  HARES  AND   THE   FROGS.  157 

out  who  he  was,  and  drove  him  out  of  the  dove- 
cote. 

He,  poor  fellow,  now  went  back  to  the  Jack- 
daws, but  they  did  not  know  him  on  account  of 
his  white  coat,  and  would  not  let  him  join  them. 

And  so,  for  wanting  to  get  into  two  compa- 
nies, he  missed  both. 

This  fable  teaches  that  it  is  best  for  us  to  be 
content  with  our  own  kind,  showing  that  the 
greedy  not  only  miss  what  they  seek,  but  often 
lose  what  they  have. 

THE  HARES  AND  THE  FROGS. 

THE  HARES  once  got  together,  and  agreed 
that  they  led  a  very  hard  life ;  that  they  were 
always  in  a  scare.  Men  chased  them,  and  dogs, 
and  eagles  ;  they  had  no  peace,  and  it  was  bet- 
ter to  die  once  for  all  than  to  live  in  a  constant 
fright. 

So  they  all  started  for  a  pond,  to  throw  them- 
selves off  a  rock  into  the  water  and  end  their 
wretched  life. 

Now  some  Frogs  were  sitting  around  the 
edge  of  the  pond,  and  heard  the  noise  made  by 
the  Hares  as  they  came  running.  They  were 
so  frightened  that  they  all  jumped  at  once  into 
the  water. 

"  Hold  on !  "  cried  one  of  the  Hares  to  his 


158  THE  COUNTRY  MAID. 

fellows.     "  Do  nothing  rash.     Do  you  not  see 
that  there  are  others  more  scared  than  we  ?  " 


THE  FOUR  BULLS    AND  THE  LION. 

FOUR  BULLS  once  agreed  to  live  together,  and 
they  fed  in  the  same  pasture.  Now  the  Lion 
saw  them  afar  off,  and  wanted  to  hunt  them, 
but  he  knew  that  he  could  not  so  long  as  they 
held  together. 

So  he  managed  to  set  them  quarreling  with 
each  other,  and  when  that  happened,  they  sep- 
arated, and  he  easily  mastered  them  one  at  a 
time. 

THE  COUNTRY  MAID  AND  HER  MILK-PAIL. 

A  COUNTRY  MAID  was  walking  slowly  along 
with  a  pail  of  milk  upon  her  head,  and  thinking 
thus  :  — 

"  The  money  for  which  I  shall  sell  this  milk 
will  buy  me  three  hundred  eggs.  These  eggs, 
allowing  for  what  may  prove  addled,  will  pro- 
duce at  least  two  hundred  and  fifty  chickens. 
The  chickens  will  be  fit  to  carry  to  market 
about  Christmas,  when  poultry  always  brings  a 
good  price,  so  that  by  May-day  I  shall  have 
money  enough  to  buy  a  new  gown.  Let  me 
see  —  green  suits  me  ;  yes,  it  shall  be  green.  In 


THE  LION,  THE  ASS,  AND  THE  FOX.      159 

this  dress  I  will  go  to  the  fair,  where  all  the 
young  fellows  will  want  me  for  a  partner,  but  I 
shall  refuse  every  one  of  them."  By  this  time 
she  was  so  full  of  her  fancy  that  she  tossed  her 
head  proudly,  when  over  went  the  pail,  which 
she  had  entirely  forgotten,  and  all  the  milk  was 
spilled  on  the  ground. 

Moral.     Don't   count    your   chickens   before 
they  are  hatched. 


THE  LION,  THE  ASS,  AND  THE  FOX. 

THE  Lion,  the  Ass,  and  the  Fox  made  a  bar- 
gain to  hunt  together.  Now,  when  they  had 
caught  a  good  supply  of  game,  they  came  to  eat 
it,  and  the  Lion  bade  the  Ass  divide  the  spoils. 
So  the  Ass  divided  it  into  three  equal  parts,  and 
called  on  each  to  choose  his  portion.  At  that 
the  Lion  fell  into  a  rage,  and  made  his  supper 
off  the  Ass. 

Then  the  Lion  told  the  Fox  to  divide  it,  and 
he  put  almost  all  the  game  into  one  great  heap 
for  the  Lion,  and  saved  only  a  small  bit  for  him- 
self. Then  the  Lion  said  :  "  My  good  fellow, 
who  taught  you  to  divide  so  well  ?  "  And  the 
Fox  said  :  "  That  dead  Ass  there." 


160       THE  FISHERMAN  AND  HIS    WIFE. 

THE  FISHERMAN  AND  HIS  WIFE. 

I. 
THE  FIRST  WISH. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  Fisherman  who 
lived  with  his  wife  in  a  hut  in  a  ditch,  near  the 
sea.  The  Fisherman  used  to  go  out  all  day 
long  to  catch  fish.  One  day,  as  he  sat  on  the 
shore  with  his  rod,  he  felt  his  line  pulled ;  he 
drew  it  in,  and  at  the  end  was  a  great  Fish. 
The  Fish  said  to  him  :  — 

"Pray  let  me  live;  I  am  not  a  real  Fish.  I 
am  an  enchanted  Prince  ;  put  me  into  the  water 
again  and  let  me  go." 

^Oh,"  said  the  Fisherman,  "you  need  not 
make  so  many  words  about  the  matter.  I  wish 
to  have  nothing  to  do  with  a  Fish  that  can  talk. 
So  swim  away  as  fast  as  you  please." 

He  put  him  back  into  the  water ;  the  Fish 
darted  straight  down  to  the  bottom,  and  left  a 
long  streak  of  blood  behind  him.  When  the 
Fisherman  went  home  to  his  wife  in  the  ditch, 
he  told  her  of  the  Fish. 

"  Did  you  not  ask  it  for  anything  ?  "  said  the 
wife. 

"  No,"  said  the  Fisherman.  "  What  should  I 
ask  for?" 

"  Ah  !  "  said  the  wife,  "  we  live  meanly  here 


THE  FISHERMAN  AND  HIS   WIFE.       161 

in  this  poor  ditch.     Go  back  and  tell  the  Fish 
we  want  a  little  cottage." 

The  Fisherman  did  not  much  like  to  do  this  \ 
but  he  went  to  the  sea,  and  looked  out.  The 
water  was  yellow  and  green.  He  stood  on  the 
edge,  and  cried :  — 

"  O  man  of  the  sea  f 
Come,  listen  to  me, 
For  Alice  my  wife, 
The  plague  of  my  life, 
Hath  sent  me  to  beg  a  boon  of  thee." 

At  that  the  Fish  swam  to  him,  and  said :  — 

"  Well,  what  does  she  want? " 

"  Ah  ! "  said  the  Fisherman,  "  my  wife  says 
that  when  I  had  caught  you,  I  ought  to  have 
asked  you  for  something,  before  I  let  you  go 
again.  She  does  not  like  to  live  in  the  ditch  ; 
she  wants  a  little  cottage." 

"  Go  home,  then,"  said  the  Fish.  "  She  is  in 
the  cottage  already."  So  the  Fisherman  went 
home,  and  saw  his  wife  at  the  door  of  a  cottage. 

"  Come  in,  come  in,"  said  she ;  "  is  not  this 
much  better  than  the  ditch  ?  "  And  there  were 
a  parlor  and  a  chamber  and  a  kitchen ;  behind 
the  cottage  was  a  little  garden,  with  all  sorts  of 
flowers  and  fruits,  and  a  yard  full  of  ducks  and 
chickens. 

"  Ah  !  "  said  the  Fisherman,  "  how   happily 
we  shall  live  now." 
,  "  At  least  we  can  try,"  answered  his  wife. 


162       THE  FISHERMAN  AND  HIS    WIFE. 

n. 

THE  SECOND  WISH. 

ALL  went  well  for  a  week  or  two,  and  then 
Dame  Alice  said :  — 

"  Husband,  there  is  not  room  enough  in  this 
cottage ;  the  garden  and  the  yard  are  both  too 
small.  I  should  like  a  large  stone  castle  to  live 
in.  So  go  to  the  Fish,  and  tell  him  to  give  us 
a  castle." 

"  Wife,"  said  the  Fisherman,  "  I  do  not  like 
to  ask  again  ;  I  fear  he  will  be  angry  ;  let  us  be 
content  with  the  cottage." 

"  Nonsense  !  he  will  give  you  what  you  ask. 
Go  along  and  try." 

The  Fisherman  went,  but  his  heart  was  heavy. 

He  came  to  the  sea,  and  the  water  was  gray 
and  gloomy,  but  it  was  calm.  He  stood  on  the 
edge  and  cried  again  :  — 

"  O  man  of  the  sea  ! 
Come,  listen  to  me, 
For  Alice  my  wife, 
The  plague  of  my  life, 
Hath  sent  me  to  beg  a  boon  of  thee  !  " 

"  Well,  what  does  she  Want  now?"  asked  the 
Fish. 

"  Ah !  "  said  the  Fisherman,  "  my  wife  wants 
to  live  in  a  stone  castle." 


THE  FISHERMAN  AND  HIS    WIFE.       163 

"  Go  home  then,  she  is  standing  at  the  door 
of  it  already."  Away  went  the  Fisherman,  and 
found  his  wife  standing  before  a  great  castle. 

"See,"  said  she,  "is  not  this  grand?"  With 
that  they  both  went  into  the  castle,  and  found 
men  and  maids  waiting  to  serve  them.  The 
rooms  were  full  of  golden  chairs  and  tables  ; 
behind  the  castle  was  a  garden,  and  a  wood  half 
a  mile  long,  full  of  hares  and  deer ;  sheep  and 
goats  were  in  the  field,  and  in  the  yard  were  sta- 
bles and  cow-houses. 

"  Well !  "  said  the  Fisherman,  "  now  we  will 
live  contented  and  happy  here  the  rest  of  our 
lives." 

"  Perhaps  we  may,"  replied  his  wife ;  "  but 
let  us  sleep  over  it,  and  see  how  it  is  in  the 
morning."  So  they  went  to  bed. 


III. 

THE    THIRD    WISH. 

WHEN  dame  Alice  awoke  the  next  day,  she 
jogged  the  Fisherman  with  her  elbow  and  cried : 

"  Husband,  get  up,  bestir  yourself,  for  we 
must  be  king  of  all  the  land." 

"Wife,  wife,"  said  the  Fisherman,  "why 
should  we  wish  to  be  king  ?  I  will  not  be  king." 

"  Then  I  will,"  said  Alice. 


164       THE  FISHERMAN  AND  HIS   WIFE. 

"But  wife,  how  can  you  be  king?  the  Fish 
cannot  make  you  a  king." 

"  Husband,"  she  said,  "  say  no  more,  but  go, 
ask  the  Fish.  I  will  be  king."  So  the  Fisher- 
man went  once  more  to  the  sea,  grieving  much 
over  his  wife.  The  waves  were  a  dark  gray  and 
were  covered  with  foam.  He  stood  on  the  edge, 
and  cried  again :  — 

"  O  man  of  the  sea ! 
Come,  listen  to  me, 
For  Alice  my  wife, 
The  plague  of  my  life, 
Hath  sent  me  to  beg  a  boon  of  thee." 

"  Well,  what  does  she  want  now  ?  "  asked  the 
Fish. 

"  Alas,"  said  the  Fisherman,  "  my  wife  wants 
to  be  king." 

"  Go  home,"  said  the  Fish  ;  "  she  is  king  al- 
ready." 

Then  the  Fisherman  went  home.  As  he 
came  close  to  the  palace,  he  saw  a  troop  of  sol- 
diers, and  heard  the  sound  of  drums  and  trum- 
pets ;  when  he  went  in,  he  saw  his  wife  on  a 
highi  throne ;  she  had  a  gold  crown  on  her  head  ; 
and  on  each  side  of  her  stood  six  beautiful 
maids,  each  a  head  taller  than  the  other. 

"  Well,  wife,"  said  the  Fisherman,  "  are  you 
king?" 

"  Yes,"  said  she,  "  I  am  king."  And  when  he 
had  looked  at  her  a  long  time,  he  said  :  — 


THE  FISHERMAN  AND  HIS    WIFE.       165 

"  Ah,  wife !  what  a  fine  thing  it  is  to  be 
king !  now  we  shall  never  have  anything  more 
to  wish  for." 

IV. 

THE    FOURTH    WISH. 

"  I  DON'T  know  how  that  may  be,"  said  Alice. 
"  Never  is  a  long  time.  I  am  king  't  is  true ; 
but  I  begin  to  be  tired  of  it,  and  I  think  I 
should  like  to  be  emperor." 

"  Alas,  wife  !  why  should  you  wish  to  be  em- 
peror? "  asked  the  Fisherman. 

"  Husband,"  said  she,  "go  to  the  Fish.  I  say 
I  will  be  emperor." 

"  Ah,  wife  !  the  Fish  cannot  make  you  em- 
peror, and  I  do  not  like  to  ask  such  a  thing." 

"  I  am  king,"  said  Alice,  "  and  you  are  my 
slave.  Go  at  once." 

So  the  Fisherman  must  needs  go  ;  but  he  said 
to  himself,  as  he  went :  — 

"  This  will  come  to  no  good  ;  it  is  too  much 
to  ask ;  the  Fish  will  be  tired  at  last,  and  then 
we  shall  repent  of  what  we  have  done."  He 
came  to  the  sea  ;  the  water  was  black,  and  a 
great  whirlwind  blew  over  it ;  but  he  went  to 
the  edge  of  the  shore,  and  cried :  — 

"  O  man  of  the  sea  ! 
Come,  listen  to  me, 
For  Alice  my  wife, 
The  plague  of  my  life, 
Hath  sent  me  to  beg  a  boon  of  thee." 


166       THE  FISHERMAN  AND  HIS    WIFE. 

"  Well,  what  does  she  want  now  ?  "  asked  the 
Fish. 

"  Ah,"  said  he,  "  she  wants  to  be  emperor." 
"  Go  home,"  said  the  Fish,  <cshe  is  emperor." 
So  he  went  home  again  ;  as  he  drew  near,  he 
saw   his   wife   sitting   on  a  very   lofty  throne, 
made  of  solid  gold;  she  had  a  gold  crown  on 
her  head,  full  two  yards  high,  and  on  each  side 
of  her  stood  her  guards  in  a  row,  each  smaller 
than  the  other,  from  the  tallest  giant  down  to  a 
wee  dwarf,  no  bigger  than  her  finger.     Before 
her  stood  princes,  and  dukes,  and  earls ;  and  the 
Fisherman  went  up  to  her,  and  said  :  — 
"  Wife,  are  you  emperor  ?  " 
"  Yes,"  said  she,  "  I  am  emperor." 


V. 

THE     FIFTH    WISH. 

"  AH,"  said  the  man,  as  he  gazed  up  at  her, 
"  what  a  fine  thing  it  is  to  be  emperor  !  " 

"  Husband,"  said  she,  "  why  should  we  stay  at 
being  emperor  ?  I  will  be  pope  next." 

"  0  wife  !  "  said  he,  "  how  can  you  be  pope  ? 
There  is  but  one  pope  at  a  time  in  the  world." 

"  Husband,"  said  she,  "  I  will  be  pope  this 
very  day." 

"  But,"  answered  the  husband,  "  the  Fish  can- 
not make  you  pope." 


THE  FISHERMAN  AND  HIS    WIFE.       167 

"  What  nonsense  ! "  said  she  j  "  if  he  can 
make  me  an  emperor,  he  can  make  me  a  pope. 
Go  and  try  him." 

So  the  Fisherman  went.  But  when  he  came 
to  the  shore,  the  wind  was  raging  and  the  sea 
was  tossed  up  and  down  like  boiling  water ;  in 
the  middle  of  the  sky  there  was  a  little  blue, 
but  toward  the  south  it  was  red,  as  if  a  dreadful 
storm  was  brewing.  At  this,  the  Fisherman 
was  in  terror,  but  he  went  to  the  edge  of  the 
shore,  and  said  in  a  low  voice :  — 

"  O  man  of  the  sea  ! 
Come,  listen  to  me, 
For  Alice  my  wife, 
The  plague  of  my  life, 
Hath  sent  me  to  beg  a  boon  of  thee." 

"  Well,  what  does  she  want  now  ?  "  asked  the 
Fish. 

"  Ah !  "  said  the  Fisherman,  "  she  wants  to 
be  pope." 

"  Go  home ;  she  is  pope." 

Then  the  Fisherman  went  home  and  found 
his  wife  sitting  on  a  throne  that  was  two  miles 
high  ;  she  had  three  great  crowns  on  her  head : 
—  around  her  stood  all  the  pomp  and  power  of 
the  church  ;  and  on  each  side  were  two  rows  of 
burning  lights,  of  all  sizes,  the  greatest  as  large 
as  the  tallest  tower  in  the  world,  and  the  least 
no  bigger  than  a  small  rush-light. 


168       THE  FISHERMAN  AND  HIS   WIFE. 

"  Wife,"  said  the  Fisherman,  as  he  looked 
at  all  this  grandeur,  "  are  you  pope  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  said  she,  "  I  am  pope." 

"  Well,  wife,"  replied  he  "  it  is  a  grand  thing 
ito  be  pope,  and  now  you  must  be  content,  for 
you  can  be  nothing  greater." 

"  I  will  consider  of  that,"  said  the  wife. 


VL 

THE    FINAL    WISH. 

THEY  went  to  bed,  but  dame  Alice  could  not 
sleep  all  night,  for  thinking  of  what  she  should 
be  next.  At  last  morning  came  and  the  sun 
rose. 

"  Ha ! "  thought  she,  as  she  looked  at  it 
through  the  window,  "  cannot  I  prevent  the 
sun  rising  ? "  At  this  she  grew  very  angry, 
and  she  waked  her  husband,  and  said  :  — 

"Husband,  go  to  the  Fish  and  tell  him  I 
want  to  be  lord  of  the  sun  and  moon." 

The  Fisherman  was  half  asleep,  but  the 
thought  so  scared  him  that  he  started  and  fell 
out  of  bed. 

"  Alas,  wife !  "  said  he,  "  cannot  you  be  con- 
tent to  be  pope  ?  " 

"  No,"  said  she,  "  I  am  very  uneasy,  and  can- 
not bear  to  see  the  sun  and  moon  rise  without 
my  leave.  Go  at  once  to  the  Fish." 


THE  KID  AND   THE    WOLF.  169 

Then  the  man  went,  quaking  with  fear;  as 
he  drew  near  the  shore,  a  great  storm  arose, 
so  that  the  trees  and  the  rocks  shook,  the  sky 
became  black,  the  lightning  flashed,  the  thunder 
rolled.  The  sea  was  one  mass  of  black  waves 
with  a  white  crown  of  foam;  and  the  Fisher- 
man whispered  :  — 

"  O  man  of  the  sea  ! 
Come,  listen  to  me, 
For  Alice  my  wife, 
The  plague  of  my  life, 
Hath  sent  me  to  beg  a  boon  of  thee." 

"What  does  she  want?" 

"  Ah  !  "  said  the  Fisherman,  "  she  wants  to  be 
lord  of  the  sun  and  moon." 

"  Go  home."  said  the  Fish,  "  to  your  ditch 
again."  And  there  they  live  to  this  very  day. 


THE  KID  AND  THE  WOLF. 

A  KID  stood  on  top  of  a  house,  and  saw  a 
Wolf  go  by  below.  He  began  to  jeer  at  the 
Wolf,  and  to  make  all  manner  of  fun  of  him. 

"0  ho  !  "  said  the  Wolf ;  "  it  is  not  you,  it 
is  the  safe  place  where  you  are,  that  laughs  at 
me." 

This  fable  teaches  that  the  place  in  which 
one  is,  or  the  time  in  which  one  acts,  often 
gives  one  great  boldness. 


170        THE   CAT,    WEASEL,   AND  RABBIT. 


THE  CAT,  THE  WEASEL,  AND  THE  YOUNG 
RABBIT. 

THERE  was  once  a  young  Rabbit,  a  quiet, 
peace-loving  Rabbit.  He  lived  in  a  neat  house,' 
and  made  no  trouble  for  any  one.  But  one  day 
he  wert  to  market  to  buy  some  parsley  ;  a  Wea- 
sel came  slyly  by  and  saw  the  little  house ;  he 
slipped  in  and  made  himself  at  home.  It  was  a 
good  place  to  stay  in,  and  there  he  meant  to 
stay.  By  and  by  the  Rabbit  came  home,  and 
saw  the  Weasel  at  the  window. 

"  Do  you  know  that  this  is  my  house  ?  "  the 
Rabbit  asked. 

"  Pooh,  pooh !  "  said  the  Weasel,  "  what 
makes  it  yours  ?  "  You  only  dug  in  the  ground 
a  little,  and  came  in  here  where  the  earth  was 
gone.  Do  you  think  you  own  the  earth  ?  " 

"  The  law  gives  it  to  me,"  said  the  Rabbit, 
"  because  I  made  it  fit  to  live  in.  If  you  do 
not  leave,  I  will  call  the  police." 

"  The  law,  indeed  !  "  said  the  Weasel ;  "  and 
pray,  what  right  has  the  law  to  give  away  land  ? 
But  we  will  have  no  more  words.  We  will  lay 
the  matter  before  the  Cat,  and  leave  it  to  him." 

"  Very  well,"  said  the  young  Rabbit,  and 
they  went  to  find  the  Cat,  —  an  old,  wise,  and 
strong  Cat. 


THE    WOMAN  AND  HER  MAIDS.  171 

"Come  nearer,  my  children,"  said  the  Cat, 
as  they  both  began  to  talk  at  the  same  time. 
"I  am  very  deaf;  nearer,  for  I  wish  to  hear 
every  word." 

They  came  close  to  the  Cat,  each  talking 
loudly.  But  as  soon  as  the  Cat  had  them 
within  reach,  he  darted  his  claws  out  on  each 
side,  and  held  them  both  fast.  First  he  made 
way  with  the  young  Rabbit,  next  with  the  Wea- 
sel ;  and  then  the  house  belonged  to  him. 


THE  WOMAN  AND  HER  MAIDS. 

A  WOMAN,  who  was  a  busy  housekeeper,  was 
wont  to  wake  her  maids  and  set  them  at  work 
by  cock-crow.  They  thought  this  very  hard, 
and  said  :  — 

"  Come,  let  us  kill  the  cock,  for  then  the  Mis- 
tress will  not  wake." 

But  when  they  had  done  this,  they  were 
worse  off  than  before.  Now,  the  woman  waked 
them  earlier  still,  in  the  middle  of  the  night, 
for  she  could  not  tell  when  it  was  cock-crow. 


172  THE   TRAVELING  MUSICIANS. 

THE  TRAVELING  MUSICIANS. 

I. 
HOW  THEY  SET  OUT. 

A  FARMER  had  an  Ass  that  had  been  a  faith» 
f  ul  servant  to  him  a  great  many  years  ;  but  the 
Ass  was  now  growing  old,  and  every  day  was 
more  and  more  unfit  for  work. 

His  master,  therefore,  was  tired  of  keeping 
him,  and  began  to  think  of  putting  an  end  to 
him  ;  but  the  Ass  saw  there  was  mischief  in  the 
wind  and  took  himself  off  slyly  ;  he  set  out  to- 
ward the  great  city.  "  For  there,"  thought  he, 
"  people  will  like  to  hear  me  bray,  and  I  shall 
earn  my  living  as  a  musician." 

He  had  traveled  a  little  way  when  he  spied  a 
Dog  by  the  wayside.  The  Dog  was  lying  down, 
and  panting  as  if  he  were  very  tired. 

"What  makes  you  pant  so,  my  friend?" 
asked  the  Ass. 

"  Alas ! "  said  the  Dog,  "  my  master  was  about 
to  knock  me  on  the  head.  I  am  old  and  weak, 
and  can  no  longer  hunt  as  I  used.  So  I  ran 
away.  But  how  can  I  earn  a  living  ?  " 

"  Hark  ye,"  said  the  Ass ;  "  I  am  going  to  the 
great  city  to  be  a  musician  ;  suppose  you  go 
with  me,  and  try  what  you  can  do  in  the  same 
way." 


THE   TRAVELING  MUSICIANS.  173 

"  Very  well,"  said  the  Dog,  and  they  jogged 
on  together. 

They  had  not  gone  far  before  they  saw  a 
Cat  sitting  in  the  middle  of  the  road.  The  Cat 
wore  a  very  sad  face. 

"  Pray,  my  good  lady,"  said  the  Ass,  "  what  is 
the  matter  with  you  ?  You  look  quite  out  of 
sorts." 

"  Ah  me  !  "  said  the  Cat, "  well  I  may.  How 
can  I  be  in  good  spirits,  when  I  fear  for  my  life  ? 
I  am  beginning  to  grow  old,  and  I  like  to  lie  at 
my  ease  by  the  fire,  and  not  to  run  about  the 
house  after  mice.  So  my  mistress  laid  hold  of 
me,  and  was  about  to  drown  me.  I  was  lucky 
enough  to  get  away  from  her ;  but  what  am  I  to 
live  on?" 

"  Oh  !  "  said  the  Ass,  "  come  with  us  to  the 
great  city.  You  are  a  good  night  singer,  and 
may  make  your  fortune  as  a  musician." 

"  Well  said,"  said  the  Cat,  and  she  joined  the 
party. 

On  they  went,  until  they  came  to  a  farm- 
yard. There  they  saw  a  Cock  perched  upon  the 
gate,  and  the  Cock  was  crowing  with  all  his 
might  and  main. 

"  Bravo !  "  said  the  Ass ;  "  upon  my  word  you 
make  a  famous  noise ;  pray,  what  is  all  this 
about?" 

"  Why,"    said  the  Cock,  "I  was  just  now  say- 


174  THE    TRAVELING  MUSICIANS. 

ing  that  it  was  going  to  be  fine  weather,  when 
lo !  the  cook  claps  her  hands  to  her  ears,  and 
says  she  means  to  cut  my  head  off,  and  make 
broth  of  me  for  the  guests  that  are  coming 
to-morrow." 

"  What  a  shame  ! "  said  the  Ass.  "  But 
come  with  us,  master  Cock.  It  will  be  better 
than  to  stay  here  and  have  your  head  cut  off. 
Besides,  who  knows  ?  If  we  take  care  to  sing  in 
tune,  we  may  get  up  some  kind  of  a  concert ;  so, 
come  along  with  us." 

"With  all  my  heart,"  said  the  Cock;  and 
they  all  four  went  on  their  merry  way. 

n. 

HOW    THEY    GAVE     A     CONCERT. 

THEY  could  not  reach  the  great  city  the  first 
day ;  so,  when  night  came  on,  they  went  into 
the  wood  to  sleep.  The  Ass  and  the  Dog  lay 
down  under  a  great  tree;  the  Cat  climbed  up 
and  sat  on  a  branch;  the  Cock  flew  up  to  the 
top  of  the  tree,  for  that  was  a  very  safe  place. 

Before  he  went  to  sleep,  he  looked  out  on  all 
sides  to  see  if  the  world  were  quiet.  Afar  off 
he  saw  something  bright,  and  he  called  out  to 
the  others :  — 

"  There  must  be  a  house  no  great  way  off,  for 
I  see  a  light." 


THE   TRAVELING  MUSICIANS.  175 

"  If  that  be  the  case,"  said  the  Ass,  "  let  us 
change  our  quarters,  for  our  lodging  here  is  not 
the  best  in  the  world." 

"  So  say  I,"  said  the  Dog.  "  I  should  not  be 
the  worse  for  a  bone  or  two,  or  a  bit  of  meat." 

So  off  they  all  went  to  the  spot  where  the 
Cock  had  seen  the  light ;  as  they  drew  near,  it 
became  larger  and  brighter,  till  at  last  they 
came  close  to  a  house  in  which  a  gang  of  rob- 
bers lived. 

The  Ass  was  the  tallest  of  the  company,  so  he 
marched  up  to  the  window  and  peeped  in. 

"  Well,  Ass,"  said  the  Cock,  «  what  do  you 
see  ?  " 

"  What  do  I  see  ?  Why,  I  see  a  table  spread 
with  all  sorts  of  good  things,  and  men  sitting 
round  it,  making  merry." 

"  That  would  be  a  fine  place  for  us  to  live 
in,"  said  the  Cock. 

"  Yes,"  said  the  Ass,  "  if  we  only  could  get 
in."  So  they  all  talked  the  matter  over,  and  at 
last  hit  upon  a  plan.  The  Ass  stood  on  his 
hind-legs,  with  his  fore-feet  resting  on  the  win- 
dow-sill ;  the  Dog  got  upon  his  back ;  the  Cat 
scrambled  up  to  the  Dog's  shoulders,  and  the 
Cock  flew  up  and  sat  upon  the  Cat's  head. 

When  all  was  ready,  they  began  their  music. 
The  Ass  brayed,  the  Dog  barked,  the  Cat 
mewed,  and  the  Cock  crowed ;  and  then  they  all 


176  THE   TRAVELING  MUSICIANS. 

broke  through  the  window  at  once,  and  came 
tumbling  into  the  room ;  the  glass  fell  with  a 
smash  upon  the  floor,  and  there  was  a  great 
clatter. 

The  robbers  started  when  they  heard  the  mu- 
sic ;  they  were  scared  out  of  their  wits  when  the 
Traveling  Musicians  came  tumbling  into  the 
room ;  and  so  they  took  to  their  heels  at  once. 


m. 

HOW    THEY    MADE    THEMSELVES    AT    HOME. 

As  soon  as  they  were  gone,  the  Traveling 
Musicians  sat  down  at  the  table ;  they  ate  all 
that  the  robbers  had  left,  and  as  they  were  very 
hungry,  they  ate  very  fast. 

Then,  when  they  had  cleared  the  table,  they 
put  out  the  h'ghts,  and  each  found  a  place  in 
which  to  sleep.  The  Ass  lay  upon  a  heap  of 
straw  in  the  yard ;  the  Dog  stretched  himself 
upon  a  mat  behind  the  door  ;  the  Cat  rolled  her- 
self up  on  the  hearth  before  the  warm  ashes  j 
and  the  Cock  perched  upon  a  beam  at  the  top  ot 
the  house.  They  were  all  tired  and  soon  fell 
asleep. 

After  some  time  the  robbers,  who  had  not 
fled  far,  got  over  their  fright.  They  saw  that 
the  lights  were  out,  and  that  all  was  quiet. 


THE   TRAVELING  MUSICIANS.  177 

They  began  to  think  they  had  been  frightened 
at  nothing.  One,  bolder  than  the  rest,  crept 
back  to  the  house.  All  was  still ;  all  was  dark. 

He  made  his  way  into  the  kitchen,  and  groped 
about  to  find  a  candle.  He  found  the  candle, 
and  then  went  to  the  fire,  as  he  thought,  to  light 
his  candle.  But  the  live  coals  which  he  thought 
he  saw  were  the  two  fiery  eyes  of  the  Cat. 

He  held  the  candle  close,  to  light  it,  but  the 
Cat,  not  liking  the  joke,  sprang  at  his  face,  and 
spit,  and  scratched  him.  Away  he  ran  to  the 
door ;  but  there  the  Dog  jumped  up  and  bit  him 
in  the  leg ;  as  he  was  crossing  the  yard,  the  Ass 
kicked  him,  and  the  Cock,  now  awake,  crowed 
with  all  his  might. 

At  this,  the  robber  ran  back  to  his  comrades, 
as  fast  as  his  legs  could  carry  him.  He  told 
them  that  a  horrid  witch  had  got  into  the  house, 
and  had  spit  at  him,  and  scratched  his  face  with 
long  bony  fingers ;  that  a  man  with  a  knife  in 
his  hand  hid  behind  the  door,  and  stabbed  him 
in  the  leg;  that  a  black  monster  stood  in  the 
yard,  and  struck  him  with  a  club  ;  and  that  the 
judge  sat  upon  the  top  of  the  house,  and  cried 
out:  — 

"  Throw  the  rascal  up  here !  " 

After  this,  the  robbers  never  dared  to  go  back 
to  the  house.  The  Traveling  Musicians  were 
so  pleased  with  then-  quarters,  that  they  took  up 


178  THE   CAT  AND   THE  MICE. 

their  abode  there,  and  there  they  are,  I  dare  say, 
at  this  very  day. 


THE  KITE  AND  THE  PIGEONS. 

THE  Pigeons  had  long  lived  in  fear  of  the 
Kite  ;  but  by  being  always  on  the  look-out,  and 
by  keeping  close  to  the  pigeon-house,  they  made 
out  to  live  in  safety. 

The  Elite  found  he  could  not  take  them  bold- 
ly ;  so  he  tried  a  trick.  He  went  to  the  pigeon- 
house  and  said :  — 

"  Why  do  you  live  all  the  time  in  fear  of  me  ? 
I  am  strong  and  could  keep  away  all  things 
that  might  hurt  you.  Make  me  your  king." 

"  "Well  said,"  thought  the  Pigeons,  and  they 
made  the  Kite  their  king.  But  when  the  Kite 
was  once  inside  the  pigeon-house,  he  shut  the 
door ;  and  then  he  ate  the  Pigeons,  one  each 
day. 

"  It  serves  us  right,"  said  one  of  them,  when 
his  turn  came. 


THE  CAT  AND  THE  MICE. 

THERE  was  a  house  which  was  overrun  with 
Mice.  A  Cat  found  this  out,  and  went  there 
and  began  to  catch  them.  At  this,  the  Mice 
hid  for  safety  in  the  eaves,  and  the  Cat  saw  that 


CLEVER  ALICE.  179 

she  must  catch  them  by  a  trick.  She  climbed 
up  to  the  eaves  and  held  by  her  hind  legs  to  a 
peg ;  there  she  hung  as  if  she  were  dead. 

One  of  the  Mice  peeped  out  and  saw  her 
there ;  but  he  said  :  — 

"  Aha,  you  fellow !  If  you  were  a  bag  of 
meal,  we  would  not  come  out  to  you." 


CLEVER  ALICE. 
I. 

SHE  SHOWS  HOW  PRUDENT  SHE  IS. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  man  who  had 
a  daughter,  who  was  called  Clever  Alice.  When 
she  was  grown  up,  her  father  said  :  — 

"  We  must  see  about  her  marrying." 

"  Yes,"  said  her  mother ;  "  as  soon  as  a 
young  man  shall  appear  who  is  worthy  of  her." 

At  last,  a  youth,  by  name  Hans,  came  from 
a  town  near  by,  and  asked  to  marry  her. 

"  But,"  he  said,  "  I  cannot  marry  your  daugh- 
ter unless  she  is  very  prudent." 

"  Oh,"  said  her  father  ;  "  never  fear  for  that ! 
she  has  a  head  full  of  brains."  And  the  mother 
added  :  — 

"  Ah,  she  can  see  the  wind  blow  up  the 
street,  and  hear  the  flies  cough." 


180  CLEVER  ALICE. 

"  Very  well,"  said  Hans  ;  "  but  mind,  if  she  is 
not  very  prudent,  I  will  not  take  her." 

Soon  they  all  sat  down  at  dinner,  and  her 
mother  said :  — 

"Alice,  go  down  into  the  cellar  and  draw 
some  cider." 

So  Clever  Alice  took  the  jug  down  from  the 
shelf,  and  went  into  the  cellar.  As  soon  as  she 
was  down-stairs,  she  drew  a  stool  and  placed  it 
before  the  cask,  in  order  that  she  might  not 
have  to  stoop  ;  for  she  thought  stooping  might 
hurt  her  back. 

Then  she  placed  the  jug  before  her,  and  turned 
the  tap.  She  did  not  wish  her  eyes  to  be  idle, 
so,  while  the  cider  was  running,  she  looked 
about  upon  the  wall  above  and  below.  As  she 
peeped  here  and  peeped  there  she  saw  a  hatchet, 
which  some  workmen  had  left  sticking  into  a 
beam  right  over  her  head.  At  sight  of  this, 
Clever  Alice  began  to  cry,  saying :  — 

"  Oh,  oh  !  if  I  marry  Hans,  and  we  have  a 
child,  and  he  grows  up,  and  we  send  him  into 
the  cellar  to  draw  cider,  this  hatchet  will  fall  on 
his  head  and  kill  him ! "  and  so  she  sat  there 
weeping  to  think  of  this  ill  chance. 


CLEVER   ALICE.  181 


II. 


ALL   FIND    OUT    HOW    PRUDENT   ALICE    IS. 

Now  the  good  people  up-stairs  were  waiting 
for  their  cider,  and  as  Clever  Alice  did  not  come, 
her  mother  sent  the  maid  to  go  and  see  what 
was  the  matter.  The  maid  went  down  into  the 
cellar,  and  there  was  Clever  Alice  on  the  stool 
before  the  cask,  crying  heartily. 

"  Alice,"  she  asked,  "  what  are  you  weeping 
about  ?  " 

"  Ah !  "  said  she,  "  have  I  not  cause  ?  If  I 
marry  Hans,  and  we  have  a  child,  and  he  grows 
up,  and  we  send  him  into  the  cellar  to  draw 
cider,  this  hatchet  will  fall  on  his  head  and  kill 
him." 

"  Oh,"  said  the  maid,  "  what  a  prudent  Alice 
we  have  !  "  and  sitting  down,  she  began  to  weep 
too,  to  think  o£  this  ill  chance. 

By  and  by,  when  the  maid  did  not  come  back, 
the  good  people  up-stairs  began  to  feel  very 
thirsty ;  so  the  husband  told  the  boy  to  go  down 
into  the  cellar  to  see  what  had  become  of  Alice 
and  the  maid.  The  boy  went  down,  and  there 
sat  Clever  Alice  and  the  maid,  both  crying. 

"What  now?"  he  asked,  looking  at  Clever 
Alice.  "  What  are  you  crying  for  ?  " 

"Ah,"  said  she,  "have  I  not  cause?     If  I 


182  CLEVER  ALICE. 

marry  Hans,  and  we  have  a  child,  and  he  grows 
up,  and  we  send  him  into  the  cellar  to  draw 
cider,  this  hatchet  will  fall  on  his  head  and  kill 
him." 

"Oh,"  said  the  boy,  "what  a  prudent  Alice 
we  have  !  "  and  he  fell  to  weeping  with  the 
others. 

Up-stairs  sat  the  good  people ;  they  waited 
and  waited,  and  at  last  the  husband  said  :  — 

"  Do  you  go  down-stairs,  wife,  and  see  what 
keeps  Alice  so  long." 

So  she  went  down,  and  found  all  three  weep- 
ing together. 

"  What  does  this  mean  ?  "  she  asked.  "  Alice 
weeping  ?  the  maid  weeping  ?  the  boy  weeping  ? 
what  is  the  trouble  ?  " 

"  Ah,"  said  Alice,  "  have  I  not  cause  ?  If  I 
marry  Hans,  and  we  have  a  child,  and  he  grows 
up,  and  we  send  him  into  the  cellar  to  draw 
cider,  this  hatchet  will  fall  on  his  head  and  kill 
him." 

"  Oh,"  said  the  mother.  "  What  a  prudent 
Alice  we  have !  "  and  she  sat  down  and  began 
to  weep  as  much  as  the  others. 

Now  the  husband  sat  above  with  Hans,  and 
they  waited  and  waited.  At  last  he  felt  so  very 
thirsty  that  he  said  :  — 

"  I  must  go  down  myself  into  the  cellar,  and 
see  what  is  keeping  our  Alice." 


CLEVER  ALICE.  183 

So  down  he  went,  and  found  Alicb.  the  maid, 
the  boy,  and  his  wife  all  weeping  as  if  their 
hearts  would  break. 

"  Dear  soul ! "  said  he  to  Clever  Alice, 
"  what  troubles  you?  " 

"  Ah,"  said  Alice,  "  have  I  not  cause  ?  If  I 
marry  Hans,  and  we  have  a  child,  and  he  grows 
up,  and  we  send  him  into  the  cellar  to  draw 
cider,  this  hatchet  will  fall  on  his  head  and  kill 
him." 

"  Ah,"  said  the  father,  "  what  a  prudent  Alice 
we  have,"  and  he  sat  down  and  began  to  cry 
with  the  whole  strength  of  his  lungs. 

All  this  time  Hans  sat  alone  up-stairs.  He 
waited  and  waited,  but  nobody  came.  So  he 
went  down  to  see  what  was  the  matter.  There 
he  saw  all  five  in  a  row,  weeping  and  wailing. 

"  Good  people,"  said  he,  "  what  is  going  on  ? 
Why  do  you  weep  ?  "  and  he  turned  to  the  hus- 
band. 

"  Ask  my  wife,"  said  he. 

"  Ask  the  boy,"  said  she. 

"  Ask  the  maid,"  said  he. 

"  Ask  Alice,"  said  she.     And  Alice  said  :  — 

"  Have  I  not  cause  ?  If  I  marry  you,  and  we 
have  a  child,  and  he  grows  up,  and  we  send  him 
into  the  cellar  to  draw  cider,  this  hatchet  will 
fall  on  his  head  and  kill  him.  Do  you  not  think 
this  is  enough  to  weep  about  ?  " 


184  CLEVER   ALICE. 

"  Now,"  said  Hans,  "  no  one  could  be  more 
prudent  than  this  girl.  So,  if  you  will,  Clever 
Alice,  I  will  marry  you." 


m. 

HOW  VERY  CLEVER  SHE  PROVED  TO  BE. 

AFTER  they  had  been  married  a  little  while, 
Hans  said  one  morning  :  — 

"  Wife,  I  will  go  out  to  work  to  earn  some 
money.  Do  you  go  into  the  field,  and  gather 
some  corn  and  make  bread." 

"  That  I  will,  dear  Hans,"  said  she.  When 
he  was  gone,  she  cooked  some  nice  porridge  to 
take  with  her.  As  she  came  to  the  field,  she 
asked  herself,  — 

"What  shall  I  do?  Shall  I  cut  the  corn 
first,  or  eat  my  porridge  ?  I  think  I  will  eat 
first."  Then  she  ate  all  that  was  in  her  bowl. 
She  looked  into  it ;  it  was  empty. 

"Now,"  she  asked  herself,  "shall  I  cut  the 
corn  or  take  a  nap  ?  I  think  I  will  take  a  nap." 
So  she  laid  herself  down  among  the  corn  and 
went  fast  to  sleep. 

By  and  by  Hans  came  home,  but  no  Alice  was 
there. 

"  Oh,"  said  he,  "  what  a  prudent  Alice  I  have. 
She  works  so  hard  that  she  does  not  even  come 
home  to  eat  anything." 


CLEVER  ALICE.  185 

Evening  came,  and  still  Alice  did  not  come 
home.  Then  Hans  went  out  to  see  how  much 
corn  she  had  cut.  And  lo  !  nothing  at  all,  and 
there  lay  Alice  fast  asleep  among  the  corn.  Off 
went  Hans  and  brought  a  net  with  bells  hanging 
from  it.  He  threw  the  net  over  her  head,  and 
went  back  to  the  house.  Then  he  shut  the  door, 
and  fell  to  working  at  his  bench. 

It  was  quite  dark  when  Clever  Alice  awoke. 
As  soon  as  she  stood  up,  the  net  fell  over  her 
hair,  and  the  bells  jingled  at  every  step  she  took. 
She  did  not  know  what  to  make  of  it,  and  began 
to  doubt  if  she  were  really  Clever  Alice,  and 
said  to  herself,  — 

"Am  I  she,  or  am  I  not?" 

She  could  not  make  up  her  mind  how  to  an- 
swer this  question.  At  last  she  thought  she 
would  go  home  and  ask  Hans.  He  would  know. 
She  came  to  the  house,  but  the  door  was  shut. 
So  she  tapped  on  the  window,  and  asked,  — 

"  Hans,  is  Alice  within  ?  " 

"Yes,"  said  he,  "she  is." 

At  that,  she  quite  lost  her  wits. 

"  Then  I  am  not  Alice  !  "  she  cried,  and  ran 
to  another  house,  to  ask  somebody  else.  But 
as  soon  as  the  folk  within  heard  the  bells  in  her 
net  jingle,  they  would  not  open  the  door.  So 
she  ran  straight  away  from  the  village,  and  no 
one  has  ever  seen  her  since.  That  is  the  end  of 
.the  story  of  Clever  Alice. 


186          THE  FROGS  ASK  FOR   A  KINO. 


THE  WOLF  AND  THE  CRANE. 

A  WOLF  once  had  a  bone  stuck  in  his  throat, 
and  offered  to  pay  the  Crane  well  if  she  would 
thrust  her  head  down,  with  its  long  bill,  and 
draw  the  bone  out. 

When  she  had  done  this,  she  asked  for  her 
pay.  Then  the  Wolf  laughed,  and  showed  his 
teeth,  and  said :  — 

"  Is  it  not  enough  for  you  that  you  have  had 
your  head  in  a  Wolf's  mouth,  and  have  drawn  it 
out  again  safely  ?  What  more  do  you  want  ?  " 

THE  FROGS  ASK  FOR  A  KING. 

IN  old  times,  we  read,  the  Frogs  lived  in  a 
free  and  easy  way,  each  one  as  he  pleased.  But 
the  elders  among  them  did  not  like  this,  and 
begged  Jove  to  send  them  a  king. 

Jove  thought  them  very  foolish,  and  tossed 
a  log  into  the  middle  of  the  pond.  The  Frogs 
were  scared  out  of  their  wits,  and  plunged  at 
once  into  the  deepest  hole.  By  and  by,  they 
peeped  out  and  saw  that  King  Log  was  stockstill. 

They  began  to  grow  bolder ;  soon  they  laughed 
at  King  Log ;  then  they  jumped  up  and  sat  on 
the  log.  That  was  not  a  king,  they  said,  and 
off  they  went  to  Jove,  and  asked  him  to  give 
them  a  new  king. 


THE    GOLDEN  BIRD.  187 

This  time  Jove  gave  them  an  Eel;  but  the 
Eel  was  stupid,  and  the  Frogs  liked  him  no 
better.  They  sent  a  third  time  to  Jove. 

At  this  Jove  was  angry,  and  sent  them  a  king 
of  another  sort.  For  he  sent  them  King  Stork, 
and  King  Stork  caught  the  Frogs,  one  by  one, 
and  ate  them,  till  there  was  not  one  left. 


THE  GOLDEN  BIRD. 

I. 
THE    BIRD     CARRIES     OFF    THE     APPLES. 

A  KING  had  a  fair  garden,  and  in  the  garden 
was  a  tree,  and  the  tree  bore  apples  of  gold. 
Every  morning  these  apples  were  counted ;  and 
every  morning  there  was  one  apple  less.  The 
king  grew  very  angry  and  bade  the  gardener 
keep  watch  all  night  under  the  tree. 

The  gardener  set  his  eldest  son  to  watch ;  but 
about  twelve  o'clock  he  fell  asleep,  and  in  the 
morning  another  apple  was  gone.  Then  the 
second  son  was  told  to  watch ;  at  twelve  o'clock 
he  fell  asleep,  and  in  the  morning  another  apple 
was  gone. 

Then  the  third  son  said  he  would  watch. 
The  gardener  would  not  let  him  at  first,  for  fear 
some  harm  would  come  to  him.  But  at  last  he 


188  THE    ^JLZEN  BIRD. 

gave  him  leave,  and  the  young  man  lay  down 
under  the  tree  to  watch. 

As  the  clock  struck  twelve,  he  heard  a  rus- 
tling noise  in  the  air,  and  a  bird  came  flying 
toward  him.  The  bird  was  of  pure  gold,  and 
snapped  at  one  of  the  apples  with  his  beak.  The 
gardener's  son  jumped  up,  and  shot  an  arrow  at 
the  bird,  but  did  it  no  harm.  Only  a  golden 
feather  fell  to  the  ground  from  its  tail,  as  the 
bird  flew  away. 

In  the  morning,  the  feather  was  carried  to  the 
king.  All  the  wise  men  were  called  together, 
and  they  said  the  feather  was  worth  all  the 
wealth  of  the  kingdom.  But  the  king  said  :  — 

"  One  feather  is  of  no  use  to  me ;  I  must  have 
the  whole  bird." 

n. 

TWO    BROTHERS   SET  OUT   TO    FIND   THE   BIRD. 

THEN  the  gardener's  eldest  son  set  out  to 
find  the  golden  bird.  He  had  gone  but  a  little 
way,  when  he  came  to  a  wood,  and  by  the  side 
of  the  wood  he  saw  a  Fox.  So  he  took  his  bow 
and  made  ready  to  shoot  at  it.  Then  the  Fox 
said:  — 

"  Do  not  shoot  me,  for  I  will  give  you  good 
counsel.  I  know  what  you  want ;  you  wish  to 
find  the  golden  bird.  You  will  come  to  a  vil* 


THE   GOLDEN  BIRD.  189 

lage  in  the  evening.  When  you  get  there  you 
will  see  two  inns  over  against  each  other.  One 
of  them  is  pleasant  to  look  at ;  go  not  in  there, 
but  rest  for  the  night  in  the  other,  though  it 
seem  to  you  very  poor  and  mean."  But  the 
eldest  son  thought  to  himself :  — 

"  What  can  such  a  beast  as  this  know  about 
the  matter? "  So  he  shot  his  arrow  at  the  Fox, 
but  he  missed  aim.  The  Fox  set  up  its  tail  over 
its  back  and  ran  into  the  wood.  Then  the  eldest 
son  went  his  way,  and  in  the  evening  came  to  the 
village  where  the  two  inns  were.  In  one  of 
them  were  people  singing  and  dancing  and  feast- 
ing ;  the  other  looked  poor  and  mean. 

"  I  should  be  very  silly,"  he  said,  "  if  I  went 
to  that  shabby  house,  and  left  this  pleasant 
place."  So  he  went  into  the  smart  house,  and 
ate  and  drank  and  took  his  ease,  and  forgot  the 
golden  bird  and  his  own  home. 

Time  passed  on.  As  the  eldest  son  came  not 
back,  and  no  tidings  were  brought  of  him,  the 
second  son  set  out,  and  the  same  thing  happened 
to  him.  He  met  the  Fox,  who  gave  him  the 
same  advice.  But  when  he  came  to  the  two 
inns,  his  elder  brother  was  standing  at  the  win- 
dow, where  the  sport  was  going  on,  and  called 
to  him  to  come  in.  He  could  not  resist,  but 
went  in  and  forgot  the  golden  bird  and  his  own 
home. 


190  THE  GOLDEN  BIRD. 

m. 

THE   YOUNGEST   SON    SEEKS   THE   GOLDEN   BIRD. 

TIME  passed  on  again,  and  the  youngest  son 
wished  to  set  out  into  the  wide  world  to  seek  the 
golden  bird;  but  for  a  long  while  his  father 
would  not  hear  of  it ;  he  was  very  fond  of  his  son, 
and  was  afraid  that  some  ill  luck  would  happen 
to  him  also,  and  prevent  him  from  coming  back. 

At  last  he  let  him  go,  for  the  boy  would  not 
rest  at  home.  He  too  went  to  the  wood  and 
met  the  Fox,  and  heard  the  same  words.  But  he 
thanked  the  Fox,  and  did  not  shoot  at  him,  as 
his  brothers  had  done. 

"  Sit  upon  my  tail,"  said  the  Fox,  "  and  you 
will  travel  faster."  So  he  took  his  seat  on  the 
Fox's  tail ;  the  Fox  began  to  run,  and  away  they 
went  over  stock  and  stone,  so  fast  that  their  hair 
whistled  in  the  wind. 

When  they  came  to  the  village,  the  youngest 
son  followed  the  counsel  of  the  Fox,  and  went 
straight  into  the  shabby  inn,  and  rested  there 
all  night.  In  the  morning  the  Fox  met  him, 
as  he  was  about  to  set  out,  and  said :  — 

"  Go  straight  on,  until  you  come  to  a  castle, 
with  a  troop  of  soldiers  fast  asleep  before  the 
gate.  Take  no  heed  of  them,  but  go  into  the 
castle,  and  pass  on  and  on  until  you  come  to  a 


THE   GOLDEN  BIRD.  191 

room,  where  the  golden  bird  sits  in  a  wooden 
cage.  Close  by  it  stands  a  beautiful  golden 
cage ;  do  not  try  to  take  the  bird  out  of  the 
shabby  cage  and  put  it  into  the  handsome  one, 
or  you  will  surely  repent  of  it."  Then  the  Fox 
stretched  out  his  tail  again,  and  the  youngest 
son  sat  on  it,  and  away  they  went  over  stock 
and  stone,  so  fast  that  their  hair  whistled  in  the 
wind. 

IV. 

THE    BIRD     IS     FOUND    AND    LOST. 

IT  was  as  the  Fox  had  said.  There  was  the 
castle,  and  before  it  the  troop  of  soldiers  fast 
asleep.  The  youngest  son  pushed  in  and  came 
to  the  room  where  the  golden  bird  hung  in  a 
wooden  cage.  Near  by  stood  a  golden  cage, 
and  the  golden  apples  that  had  been  lost  were 
lying  by  it.  Then  he  thought  to  himself  :  — 

"  It  would  be  odd  to  bring  away  such  a  fine 
bird  in  a  shabby  cage."  So  he  opened  the  door, 
and  took  hold  of  the  bird  to  put  it  into  the 
golden  cage.  At  that  the  bird  set  up  a  scream. 
All  the  soldiers  awoke  and  seized  the  youngest 
son,  and  carried  him  off  to  the  king. 

The  next  morning  the  court  sat  in  judgment. 
They  heard  what  he  had  done,  and  then  they 
sentenced  him  to  death,  unless  he  should  bring 


192  THE   GOLDEN  BIRD. 

the  king  the  golden  horse,  which  could  run  as 
swiftly  as  the  wind.  If  he  did  this,  he  was  to 
live,  and  was  to  have  the  golden  bird  for  his 
own. 

V. 

THE     GOLDEN     HORSE. 

So  the  youngest  son  set  out  once  more  on  his 
travels.  He  was  in  a  sad  state  of  mind,  when 
on  a  sudden  his  friend,  the  Fox,  met  him,  and 


"  You  see  now  what  happened  because  you 
did  not  heed  my  words.  But  I  will  tell  you 
how  to  find  the  golden  horse,  only  you  must  do 
as  I  bid  you.  You  must  go  straight  on  till  you 
come  to  the  castle  where  the  horse  stands  in  his 
stall.  By  his  side  will  lie  the  groom  fast  asleep. 
Take  away  the  horse  quietly,  but  be  sure  to  put 
the  old  leather  saddle  upon  him,  and  not  the 
golden  one  which  is  close  by." 

Then  the  youngest  son  sat  upon  the  Fox's  tail, 
and  away  they  went  over  stock  and  stone,  so  fast 
that  their  hair  whistled  in  the  wind. 

All  went  well.  There  was  the  golden  horse 
in  his  stall,  and  there  lay  the  groom  asleep,  with 
his  hand  upon  the  golden  saddle.  But  when 
the  youngest  son  looked  at  the  horse,  he  thought 
it  a  great  pity  to  put  the  leather  saddle  upon 
him. 


THE   GOLDEN  BIRD.  193 

" I  will  give  him  the  best  one,"  said  he  ;  "I 
am  sure  he  deserves  it."  So  he  took  up  the 
golden  saddle ;  but  as  he  did  this,  the  groom 
awoke  and  cried  aloud;  all  the  guards  ran  in 
and  made  him  prisoner,  and  in  the  morning  he 
was  brought  before  the  court.  His  doom  was 
to  die,  but  the  judges  said  that  he  might  live  if 
he  could  bring  to  the  king  the  beautiful  prin- 
cess ;  not  only  should  he  live,  but  he  was  to 
have  the  golden  bird  and  the  golden  horse  for 
his  own. 

VI. 

THE     BEAUTIFUL     PRINCESS. 

THE  youngest  son  went  his  way  very  sad,  but 
the  old  Fox  came  to  him  again,  and  said  :  — 

"  Why  did  you  not  listen  to  me  ?  If  you  had 
listened,  you  would  have  carried  away  both  the 
bird  and  the  horse.  But  attend.  Go  straight 
on,  and  in  the  evening  you  will  arrive  at  a  cas- 
tle. At  twelve  o'clock  at  night,  the  princess 
will  come  into  the  hall.  Go  up  to  her,  and  take 
her  hand,  and  she  will  let  you  lead  her  away. 
But  take  care  you  do  not  suffer  her  to  go  and 
take  leave  of  her  father  and  mother."  Then 
the  Fox  stretched  out  his  tail,  and  away  they 
went  over  stock  and  stone,  so  fast  that  their 
hair  whistled  in  the  wind. 


194  THE   GOLDEN  BIRD. 

They  came  to  the  castle,  and  all  was  as  the 
Fox  had  said.  At  twelve  o'clock  the  youngest 
son  met  the  princess  as  she  came  into  the  hall. 
He  took  her  hand,  and  she  agreed  to  run  away 
with  him,  but  begged  with  many  tears  that  he 
would  let  her  take  leave  of  her  father  and 
mother. 

At  first  he  would  not,  but  she  wept  still  more 
and  more,  and  fell  at  his  feet,  till  at  last  he  con- 
sented. But  the  moment  she  came  to  her 
father's  house,  the  guards  awoke  and  took  the 
youngest  son  prisoner.  He  was  brought  before 
the  father  of  the  princess,  who  said  :  — 

"  You  shall  never  have  my  daughter,  unless 
in  eight  days  you  dig  away  the  hill  that  stops 
the  view  from  my  window." 

Now  this  hill  was  so  big  that  a  thousand  men 
working  a  thousand  days  could  not  take  it  away ; 
but  the  youngest  son  went  to  work.  When  he 
had  digged  for  seven  days,  the  Fox  came  to 
him  and  said  :  — 

"  Lie  down,  and  go  to  sleep.  I  will  work  for 
you." 

In  the  morning  the  youngest  son  awoke,  and 
the  hill  was  gone.  So  he  went  merrily  in,  and 
told  the  father  of  the  princess  that  now  he  must 
give  him  his  daughter.  The  father  said  he 
would  keep  his  word,  and  away  went  the  young- 
est son  and  the  princess. 


THE   GOLDEN  BIRD.  195 

VII. 
THE    PRINCESS,    THE    HORSE,    AND    THE    BIRD. 

THEN  the  Fox  came  and  said :  — 

"  We  will  have  all  three,  the  princess,  the 
horse,  and  the  bird." 

"  Ah,"  said  the  youngest  son,  "  that  would  be 
a  fine  thing  !  but  how  will  you  bring  it  about  ?  " 

"  If  you  will  only  listen,  it  can  soon  be  done. 
When  you  come  to  the  king,  and  he  asks  for 
the  beautiful  princess,  you  must  say,  e  Here  she 
is ! '  Then  he  will  be  very  joyful,  and  you  will 
mount  the  golden  horse  that  they  are  to  give 
you,  and  put  out  your  hand  to  take  leave  of 
them  ;  but  shake  hands  with  the  princess  last. 
When  you  take  her  hand,  lift  her  quickly  upon 
the  horse  ;  seat  her  behind  you,  clap  your  spurs 
to  his  side,  and  gallop  away  as  fast  as  you  can." 

All  went  well.  Then  the  Fox  came  to  him 
again,  and  said  :  — 

"  When  you  come  to  the  castle  where  the  bird 
is,  I  will  stay  with  the  princess  at  the  door  ;  you 
will  ride  in  and  speak  to  the  king.  When  he 
sees  that  you  are  on  the  golden  horse  he  will 
bring  out  the  bird.  But  you  must  sit  still  and 
say  that  you  want  to  look  at  it,  to  see  if  it  be 
the  true  golden  bird.  When  you  get  it  in  your 
hand,  ride  away." 


196  THE  GOLDEN  BIRD. 

This  too  happened  as  the  Fox  had  said. 
They  carried  off  the  bird,  the  princess  mounted 
again,  and  they  rode  on  to  a  great  wood.  Then 
the  Fox  came  and  said  :  — 

"  Pray  kill  me,  and  cut  off  my  head  and  my 
feet." 

But  the  youngest  son  would  not  do  this.  So 
the  Fox  said :  — 

"  I  will  at  any  rate  give  you  good  counsel. 
Beware  of  two  things.  Do  not  save  any  one 
from  being  hanged,  and  sit  down  by  no  river." 
Then  away  he  went. 


VIII. 

HOW    THE    YOUNGEST    SON     LOST    EVERYTHING. 

"  WELL,"  thought  the  youngest  son,  "  it  is  no 
hard  matter  to  keep  such  advice  as  that."  He 
rode  on  with  the  princess,  till  at  last  he  came  to 
the  village  where  he  had  left  his  two  brothers. 
There  he  heard  a  great  uproar,  and  when  lie 
asked  what  was  the  matter  the  people  said  :  — 

"  Two  men  are  to  be  hanged." 

As  he  came  near,  he  saw  that  the  two  men 
were  his  brothers,  who  had  turned  robbers,  so 
he  asked  :  — 

"  Cannot  they  in  any  way  be  saved  ?  " 

But  the  people  said,  "  No,"  unless  he  would 


THE   GOLDEN  BIRD.  197 

give  all  his  money  to  buy  liberty  for  the  rascals. 
He  did  not  stop  to  think  about  the  matter,  but 
paid  what  was  asked,  and  his  brothers  were 
given  up,  and  went  on  with  him  toward  their 
home. 

As  they  came  to  the  wood  where  the  Fox 
first  met  them,  it  was  so  cool  and  pleasant  that 
the  brothers  said  :  — 

"  Let  us  sit  down  by  the  side  of  the  river,  and 
rest  awhile,  to  eat  and  drink."  The  youngest 
son  forgot  the  Fox's  counsel  and  said  "  Yes," 
and  sat  down  by  the  side  of  the  river.  He  was 
fearing  nothing,  when  the  brothers  came  behind, 
and  threw  him  down  the  bank,  and  took  the 
princess,  the  horse,  and  the  bird,  and  went  home 
to  the  king,  their  master. 

"  All  this  have  we  won  by  our  labor,"  they 
said,  and  then  was  there  great  joy.  But  the 
horse  would  not  eat,  the  bird  would  not  sing, 
and  the  princess  wept. 

rx. 

THE  YOUNGEST  SON  COMES  TO  THE  THRONE. 

Now  the  youngest  son  fell  to  the  bottom  of 
the  river.  Luckily,  it  was  nearly  dry,  but  he 
was  badly  bruised,  and  the  bank  was  so  steep 
that  he  could  not  climb  out.  Then  the  Fox 


198  THE   GOLDEN  BIRD. 

came  once  more,  and  scolded  him  for  not  follow- 
ing his  advice. 

"  Yet,"  said  he,  "  I  cannot  leave  you  here. 
So  lay  hold  of  my  tail  and  hold  fast."  Then 
he  pulled  him  out  of  the  river,  and  said  to  him, 
as  he  stood  upon  the  bank  :  — 

"  Your  brothers  have  set  watch  to  kill  you  if 
they  find  you  in  the  kingdom." 

So  he  dressed  himself  as  a  poor  man,  and 
came  in  secret  to  the  king's  court.  Scarcely 
was  he  within  the  doors  when  the  horse  began 
to  eat,  the  bird  began  to  sing,  and  the  princess 
left  off  weeping.  Then  he  went  to  the  king 
and  told  him  what  rogues  his  brothers  had  been. 
The  king  seized  the  brothers  and  clapped  them 
into  prison.  The  youngest  son  got  the  princess 
again,  and  after  the  king's  death  he  was  heir  to 
the  kingdom. 

A  long  while  after,  he  went  to  walk  one  day 
in  the  wood.  The  Fox,  now  grown  old,  met 
him,  and  begged  him  with  tears  in  his  eyes  to 
kill  him,  and  cut  off  his  head  and  feet.  At  last, 
being  much  urged,  he  did  so,  and  lo  !  the  Fox 
was  changed  into  a  man,  and  turned  out  to  be 
the  princess's  brother,  who  had  been  lost  a  great 
many  years. 


INDEX. 


Ant  and  the  Grasshopper,  The, 

105. 

Arab  and  his  Camel,  The,  81. 
Ass  in  the  Lion's  Skin,  The,  32. 

Beauty  and  the  Beast,  123. 
Belling  the  Cat,  78. 
Boy  and  the  Nettle,  The,  33. 
Boy  who  Stole  Apples,  The,  33. 
Boys  and  the  Frogs,  The,  24. 

Cat  and  the  Mice,  The,  178. 

Cat,  the  Monkey,  and  the  Chest- 
nuts, The,  108. 

Cat,  the  Weasel,  and  the  Young 
Rabbit,  The,  170. 

Cinderella  ;  or,  The  Glass  Slipper, 
86. 

Clever  Alice,  179. 

Country  Fellow  and  the  River,  A, 
28. 

Country  Maid  and  her  Milk-Pail, 
The,  158. 

Country  Mouse  and  the  Town 
Mouse,  The,  84. 

Crab  and  his  Mother,  The,  24. 

Crow  and  the  Pitcher,  The,  28. 

Dick   Whittiugton  and  his  Cat, 

109. 

Dog  and  his  Image,  The,  67. 
Dog  and  the  Wolf,  The,  43. 
Dog  in  the  Manger,  The,  33. 

Eagle  Shot  with  an  Eagle's  Ar- 
row, The,  104. 

Elves  and  the  Shoemaker,  The, 
29. 

Farmer  and  the  Stork,  The,  65. 


Farmer's  Sons,  The,  57. 
Fisherman    aud  his  Wife,    The, 

160. 
Fisherman  and  the  Sprat,  The, 

83. 
Flies  and  the  Pot  of  Honey,  The, 

107. 
Four   Bulls  and  the  Lion,  The, 

158. 

Fox  and  the  Grapes,  The,  66. 
Fox  and  the  Lion,  The,  96. 
Fox  and  the  Stork,  The,  104. 
Fox  in  the  Well,  The,  58. 
Fox    that    lost    his    Tail,    The, 

108. 

Frog  and  the  Ox,  The,  78. 
Frogs  ask  for  a  King,  The,  186. 

Gnat  and  the  Bull,  The,  86. 

Golden  Bird,  The,  187. 

Goose  that  laid  Golden  Eggs,  The, 


Hans  in  Luck,  34. 
Hares  and  the  Frogs,  The,  157. 
Hunter  and  the  Woodcutter,  The, 
43. 

Jack  and  the  Bean-Stalk,  44. 
Jackdaw  and  the  Doves,  The,  156. 

Kid  and  the  Wolf,  The,  169. 
Kite  and  the  Pigeons,  The,  178. 

Lark  and  her  Young  Ones,  The 

121. 

Lion  and  the  Bear,  The,  42. 
Lion  and  the  Fox,  The,  106. 
Lion  and  the  Mouse,  The,  41. 
Lion  in  Love,  The,  137. 


200 


INDEX. 


Lion,  the  Ass,  and  the  Fox,  The, 

159. 
Little  One  Eye,  Little  Two  Eyes, 

and  Little  Three  Eyes,  13. 
Little  Red  Riding -Hood,  25. 

Man  and  the  Lion,  The,  67. 
Miller,  his  Son,  and  their  Ass, 
The,  79. 

Puss  in  Boots,  59. 

Reeds  and  the  Oak,  The,  84. 

Sleeping    Beauty   in  the   Wood, 

The,  97. 
Spendthrift    and    the    Swallow, 

The,  105. 

Stag  and  the  Lion,  The,  57. 
Star-Gazer,  The,  32. 


Tom  Thumb,  68. 

Tortoise    and    the    Eagle,    The, 

139. 

Tortoise  and  the  Hare,  The,  83. 
Traveler  and  the  Viper,  The,  137. 
Travelers  and  the  Axe,  The,  139. 
Travelers  and  the  Bear,  The,  120. 
Traveling  Musicians,  The,  172. 
Two  Packs,  The,  58. 

White  Cat,  The,  140. 
Wind  and  the  Sun,  The,  24. 
Wolf  and  the  Crane,  The,  186. 
Wolf  and  the  Goat,  The,  56. 
Wolf  and  the  Lamb,  The,  138. 
Wolf  and  the  Shepherd,  The,  106. 
Wolf  in  Sheep's  Clothing,  The, 

81. 

Wolves  and  the  Sheep,  The,  121. 
Woman  and  her  Maids,  The,  171. 


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